Rabbi Claude's Scribbles

  Joe Green is sent to prison. On his first evening there, he meets the other prisoners and they are playing what seems to him to be a strange game. One inmate calls out the number ‘7’ and the others laugh. Another calls out ‘60’ and the prisoners are beside themselves in hysterics. No sooner are they able to regain their composure than a third prisoner calls out ‘114’ and they are gasping for breath. Joe asks them what is going on and Harry, to the left of him explains: “This is a game we play. We have assigned numbers to jokes we like and as they are quite long, to save time and effort, we just call out the number instead of reciting the entire joke.” Joe then asks: “Could I have a go?” Harry replies: “Sure!” Joe then calls out “28” and the prisoners don’t respond. He tries again: “4”. There is silence. Not to be dissuaded, he tries a third time: “47”. You can hear a pin drop but not a single laugh. He then asks: “What am I doing wrong? Are those jokes not funny

I am not a football fan. However, in my line of work, when the students enquire as to which team you support, one must respond.  With this in mind, I decided to go with Tottenham.  I like the team strip (Zionistic blue and white, how can you beat that?) and the fact that I visited White Hart Lane a few years ago for a school training course.  By the way, they had a great hospitality suite. To compound my admiration for the team, my step-daughter's husband, A (I can't really call him my step-son-in-law as it's too much of a mouthful) is a seriously committed Arsenal fan.  Season ticket holder.  The lot.  It makes for good conversation, even though the only player I've heard of is Harry Kane and apparently, he wants to leave!  I have no idea what position they ended up in the league last season, but I do remember the so-called Glory Days of the 1980s when 'we' had players like Lineker and Klinsmann. Because he takes it all so seriously and gets depressed when '

It was a violation of the trust that the people had placed into him. He was after all a respected leader, someone whose face was known to many. He had numerous responsibilities, not least to those he was answerable to. That he could have acted in such a disgraceful manner is deeply disturbing and disappointing. He has let us all down. On the face of it, you would expect that these words might very well apply to the recent news that jolted the Nation regarding the behaviour of the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care. The honest and open face that reassured us when we struggled to make sense of the pandemic that overtook our lives one-and-a-half-years ago. The man whom we thought we could trust has revealed himself to be anything but trustworthy, as per his statement of resignation: "...I want to reiterate my apology for breaking the guidance, and apologise to my family and loved ones for putting them through this....we owe it to people who have sacrificed so