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Friday January 18, 2008

Shorts: U.S.

Jewish leaders defend Obama

Jewish organizational leaders defended Democratic presidential hopeful Barack Obama against a smear campaign.

Obama has been the subject of an email making the rounds in the Jewish community alleging that he is a Muslim, attended a radical Islamic madrassah in Indonesia and took his oath of office on a Koran. None of the claims are true, and the campaign has published a detailed refutation on its Web site.

“These tactics attempt to drive a wedge between our community and a presidential candidate based on despicable and false attacks based on religion,” said a letter signed by the heads of several national Jewish organizations. — jta

Nevada caucuses on Shabbat

Jews in Nevada are upset that the state’s Democratic and Republican parties scheduled their respective caucuses to start Jan. 19 during Shabbat services.

Unlike primaries, which allow for absentee voting, the more elaborate caucusing process requires voters to arrive at polling stations at specific times. — jta

JDate on the market

The parent company of the Jewish online dating Web site JDate.com is up for sale.

JDate owner Sparks Networks, which owns personal Web sites aimed at religious and other special interest groups, is in talks with several major media companies.

Sparks Networks could sell for as much as $185 million, analysts speculated. The company has a market value of $131.4 million.

Reuters reported that about half of Sparks Networks’ revenue for the first nine months of 2007 came from its Jewish Networks division. — jta

N.C. school halts Nazi role-play

A North Carolina middle school will halt a classroom exercise in which students role-play as Nazis and Jews.

The Hoke County Board of Education voted last week to end the eighth-grade English class exercise in conjunction with reading “The Diary of Anne Frank” after a parent complained.

Students were divided into Jews and Nazis; the students playing Jews were not allowed to participate in class activities without permission from the students playing Nazis. The roles reversed the following week. — jta

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