Is It Good For The Jews?

Lots of questions this week: Is the “Jew coup” behind the impeachment hearings? We’re so busy running banking, the media and the weather, how would we have time? Is Amazon evil, or is it what we want? Are we overreacting about the Auschwitz Christmas ornaments? What is a “motivator?” Is Wal-Mart opening a store in … Continue reading Episode #228: Crocs are an abomination →

There’s a party upstairs, but we’re not invited. Instead, join a bruised and weary Rosen and a jaunty Goldbrener for tales of elderly (yet still annoying) dogs and their incompetent owners and European soccer teams who lean into their opponents’ anti-Semitism. The good news is that the boys continue on in a light vein, featuring … Continue reading Episode #227: Jewish marketing, Sam Rosenbaum →

There’s plenty of ranting going on in the Twilight Lounge this week, thanks to the kid playing video games in the library. Thus triggered, Rosen descends into a somewhat thoughtful monologue that ends with the boys imagining their own (non-existent) Wikipedia pages and waxing nostalgic about their childhood audio experiences. Also mentioned this celebrity-laden week: … Continue reading Episode #226: Goldblum, Bernie →

Don’t let Rosen’s migraine-induced miasma prevent you from enjoying this raucous episode of your favorite Jewish podcast. Instead, step into the Twilight Lounge to hear about Hamas’ never-ending threats, little kids dressed as Hitler, Goldbrener’s uniquely punk rock take on the shock value of the swastika and Rosen’s unsettling question about the anti-semites’ end game. … Continue reading Episode #225: Rags to riches →

This week, Goldbrener declares his love for floral and paisley shirts and tells a horrifying tale of a friend who once had the hiccups for “years.” Somehow that leads to anxiety over the economics of adventure guides and eventually, a general suspicion about the purpose of a digital map of “Jewish San Francisco” and a … Continue reading Episode #224: Free tuition… and paisley! →

Brace yourselves, real San Franciscans: it’s 85 degrees in October and Rosen is on the warpath (again), chewing gum and reusing his non-reusable plastic bottle only hours after surviving an embarrassing morning FaceTime incident. But stick around, because this is a lively episode of (Is it) Good for the Jews? that touches on the World … Continue reading Episode #223: Ayatollah redux, FaceTiming strangers →

This week, Rosen has no wifi and his dog is covered with poo, but this is the least of his worries. He is having (another?) Jewish crisis. A chance beach meeting with celebrating Jews has him spinning into a bout of Jewish self-loathing and a very different sort of episode. Meanwhile, Goldbrener loves being a … Continue reading Episode #222: Do you like being Jewish? →

Welcome to the Twilight Lounge, no longer a safe haven from San Francisco’s fake summer heat. It’s oppressive, this heat, and though real San Franciscans like Goldbrener are cool and collected, Rosen is not handling it well, preferring instead the freak snowstorm he faced the week before in the Sierras and the glory of his … Continue reading Episode #221: Joint League, room A/C, Gandhi →

This week, Rosen sets up the scene in the Twilight Lounge before moving onto tales of woe from South San Francisco’s best (and slowest-moving) legendary sandwich place, where dogs are allowed as long as they’re not at counter level. Several minutes later, having debated the merits of lactose-free sour cream and noted the miracle of … Continue reading Episode #220: Burn, baby, burn →

One thing you will not learn this week is what sort of home security system protects Goldbrener from his many foes, both real and imagined. Rosen, however, is eager to publicly share his misadventures with homes security because who cares if your house is safe when the coming ice age is unavoidable? Meanwhile, Novato is … Continue reading Episode #219: Preventing hate, protecting your home →

This week, Rosen has (finally!) returned to the Twilight Lounge after spending the entire summer away and is eager to share stories of his travels, including struggles with crowds of tourists, censorship, an almost-meeting with Jeremy Corbyn and who Labour thinks are the “real” anti-semites, before moving onto a meditation on the nature of being … Continue reading Episode #218: Welcome back, Jews! →

Welcome to the Twilight Lounge, where the dry rot has been removed and Rosen’s house siding down the hill. This is our last episode until September, so sit back, relax and spend an hour with The Jews (TM), who have plenty to say about dermatologists who’ve been to Berlin, semi-semites and the new Neil Diamond … Continue reading Episode #217: Double standards, Neil Diamond, semi-semites →

It is into an under construction Twilight Lounge that the boys descend this week, willfully ignoring the chaos that surrounds them (for the most part, until the smoke detector goes off). After a two-week layoff, Goldbrener has returned from his Sequoia Park poker outing to muse on potential guest hosts during Rosen’s upcoming summer-long European … Continue reading Episode #216: “Concentration” camps, Vegans →

Sit back, pour yourself a ManMosa and return to the comforting Twilight Lounge for the latest sparring session between your favorite urban Jews, Rosen and Goldbrener. This week, the boys recount Rosen’s Texan boot-buying expedition (and Goldbrener’s run-in with a youthful anti-tech enthusiast) before once again returning to the concept of faith — this time … Continue reading Episode #215: Black-Jewish caucus, buying cowboy boots →

Early morning in the Twilight Lounge means snubbing the guys at the gym (except Ron but especially the Millennials), donning New Wave glasses and diving into intense debates about faith without the benefit of segue. If this is what you’re looking for, you’ve come to the right place. This week, Rosen and Goldbrener wade into … Continue reading Episode #214: You’ve gotta have faith →

After 16 minutes of freezing on Goldbrener’s porch, an agitated Rosen enters the Twilight Lounge sporting a broken pair of glasses, still glowing from seeing a middle-aged punk rock show in Arizona and reeling from Mel Gibson’s image rehabilitation repeated pleas at a funeral to “tell me more about Israel.” Which leads us to this … Continue reading Episode #213: What is Rashida talking about? →

Rosen’s dog has balloons on his feet and the energy is low, but that doesn’t prevent your favorite Jews from delving deep into the nature of exclusionary covenants — both written and implied — and the hidden trauma experienced by a Jew at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club. Meanwhile, Jews are experiencing real … Continue reading Episode #212: Even the help is WASPs →

Someone left the space heater on, leaving the Twilight Lounge with the unmistakable vibe of a Bikram yoga studio. Goldbrener insists Rosen eat meat, but it’s not happening. He’d just as soon eat a Jeep… and buy a Rush coloring book. Do swastika painters understand what they’re doing? Does it matter if they do? When … Continue reading Episode #211: Barghouti, Swastikas and FODMAP →

Rosen and Goldbrener’s hidden agenda proves successful this week: they do NOT talk about the recent Israeli elections! Instead, listeners are treated to a sordid tale of almost-bar fights, fake tough guys and the Bee Gees, followed by a smorgasbord of Jewish news (Bezos, Airbnb, Beresheet, and a long debate pitting “haggadah originalists” against the … Continue reading Episode #210: “She’s trayfing up a Jewish profession!” →

Jewish news comes at you rapid-fire this week, as the boys rifle through item after sometimes disturbing, sometimes amusing items that include Wacky Ken Livingstone, the Iditarod, Ukrainian comedians, Ricky Henderson, rapid-fire sandwich-making and poor-quality Girl Scout cookies. But first, the civility of the deep south has Rosen wondering about the priorities of his big-city … Continue reading Episode #209: Bread-sliced bagels are a travesty →

Rosen has returned from a triumphant trip to Idaho, where fell prey to late-night pizza and a semi-mea culpa for David Cross. From there, the boys turn their attention to Jewish news, a re-branding for Jexodus and a vision of Bernie Sanders operating his own Einstein’s Bagels franchise. Rosen wants “solidarity” from atoning Nazis; Goldbrener … Continue reading Episod4 #208: Wall-to-wall Jews →

This week, Rosen and Goldbrener tackle the college admissions scandal and Bay Area media’s gleeful coverage of involved local families and somehow end up blaming Napster for the rise of youthful socialists in the U.S. Having established this, they move onto things Goldbrener finds either distasteful or unimpressive: Exxon, the Black Hat Guys, Rosen’s claim … Continue reading Episode #207: JEXODUS! →

Having worked out their scheduling conflicts, the boys return to the Twilight Lounge to answer the pressing questions of the day, namely: Is there anything left in the world Rosen is allowed to eat? Is red wine masculine? How close did Kimel’s kid’s basketball team get to the state title? Are there any blankets besides … Continue reading Episode #206: Rosen can’t eat; Jewbilee →

Rosen makes the argument that electric cars might force us to slow down — which might be a good thing. Goldbrener bats it back in his face, but his co-host rebounds to sing the ambivalent joys of gluten-free dining and over-react to a recent shooting(!) in Goldbrener’s neighborhood. Meanwhile, good news: Israel is going to … Continue reading Episode #205: Bibi in trouble; electric cars →

The boys return after a break to talk about guitar nerds and the burden of Rosen’s bottomless body of knowledge, before diving deeply into questions of the Manly Arts and the proper response to a guy harassing his girlfriend at the airport. After Goldbrener reveals his failsafe approach to not getting beat up, they move … Continue reading Episode #204: How do you solve a problem like Ilhan? →

Spirits are running high this week as the boys celebrate Julian Edelman’s Super Bowl MVP before sliding into Rosen’s conundrum from his weekend at the Shangri-La Hotel in Santa Monica. Should Jewish consumers patronize businesses with a (admittedly limited) history of anti-semitic incidents? Later in the episode, after it is revealed that Goldbrener owns three … Continue reading Episode #203: MVP! MVP! →

Rosen and Goldbrener return to the Twilight Lounge this week, address a quick question regarding Italian-Jewish relations, then dive into a longer rumination on the former’s shortcomings in the area of the Manly Arts and the latter’s proclivity for workplace naps. Meanwhile in the world of Jews, students are harassing teachers, Sam has a new … Continue reading Episode #202: Howie, not-so-real men →

This week, the boys convene during a ferocious storm (by California standards) to discuss the following topics: Rosen’s pretzel addiction and generally incomprehensible diet restrictions, whether Goldbrener could weigh 600 lbs., why Nina Burleigh feels talking about Chabad is the “third rail” of American journalism, Black Cube, why Goldbrener feels Jews should attend USF’s Middle … Continue reading Episode #201: AirBnB feels the heat; Rosen feels the pretzels →

As we ease into the new year, technology hates Rosen — but that’s nothing new. Jenna Jameson, passionate Jew, has left Twitter due to all of the anti-semitism, Omri Casspi is picking fights with his teammates. LeBron James is interested in getting that Jewish money, and Goldbrener isn’t entirely convinced he should apologize.  Or that … Continue reading Episode #200: Jew-hating, woke-washing, LeBron’s Jewish money →

Why did Rosen skip the Grotto holiday party? How did his dad cut his chin? Where are the finest woolens made? Yes, it’s time to head back into the Twilight Lounge, where the boys await with hot takes to rival anything found on sports or news radio. This week: a warning about “Families Together,” a … Continue reading Episode #199: Jewish superheroes, screw you, Alice →

Space heaters make their debut this week in the Twilight Lounge,  warming up the room enough to propel Goldbrener and Rosen into a surprisingly deep conversation about Judaism, the Torah and faith. Before that, though, they touch on all manner of shallowness ranging from smart phone addiction to the cognitive decline of the family dog, … Continue reading Episode #198: Pray for rain, hide your iPhone →

An illness-wracked Rosen returns to the Twilight Lounge after Thanksgiving, sporting a nasty cough and less than 25 percent laptop battery life, forcing the boys into a truncated post-holiday episode. Join them this week as they recount their respective holiday breaks, touching on turkey skeletons, dog shows and proper snacking strategies before addressing the important … Continue reading Episode #197: Europe hates us →

Ease into a relaxed Twilight Lounge this week, where you will find Rosen and Goldbrener joined by author and speaker (and Jew) Kevin Smokler, a guest with gravitas enough to convince the boys to ditch their entire format in service of a single question: “Is hip-hop good for the Jews?” Of course it is, which … Continue reading Episode #196: Three Jews talk about music →

Despite a light-hearted start to this week’s Twilight Lounge sit-down, things quickly turn contentious when Rosen aims his sights at newly-elected anti-semitic members of congress and  frequent target Linda Sarsour. Should Jews turn away from the Women’s March because of its leadership? Seems like a simple question… but no! Goldbrener has a unique and opposed … Continue reading Episode #195: Are we being played? →

This week we learn that the boys of (Is it) Good for the Jews? are not immune to the weight of the world, so rather than bring you business as usual in the Twilight Lounge, Rosen and Goldbrener invite you to spend the hour breaking down the recent events in Pittsburgh — not so much … Continue reading Episode #194: Pittsburgh →

This week, Rosen gives Goldbrener a lesson in personal grooming that includes mentions of Joseph Heller, healthy knee fluid, Jane’s Addiction, Goldbrener facing discrimination at the mall and well-lit magnifying mirrors. Listeners that can stomach this entertaining yet slightly unsettling discussion  will be rewarded with the dark truths about the present state of CBGBs, which,  … Continue reading Episode #193: Far-right Jews, CBGB, unwanted hair →

Rosen is back from Switzerland with tales of aggressive prostitutes, humiliating Starbucks orders, public smokers and odd linens. Meanwhile, in the world of Jews, Brooklyn’s Hasidim are easy targets for Jew-haters looking to blow off some steam. Josh Rosen has (finally) embraced his heritage, and the Mitzvah Tank is on prowling city streets. But unrest … Continue reading Episode #192: Swiss Tales, Mitzvah Tanks, Ivy League Jews →

Plenty of bad news for Jews this week (not surprising), but the bullseye is on BART for taking advertising bucks from a Holocaust denial group (seven years after letting “culture jammers” intimidate it into removing “hateful” pro-Israel ads)  and on Rosen, who needs some time to work through his feelings when an author he knows refers … Continue reading Episode #191: Bad BART, Goldrener’s safe →

What does it mean to “stand up for what you believe in?” Does it only apply to people on the “right” side of history? Step into the Twilight Lounge, where Rosen and Goldbrener will eventually tackle this question head-on. But first: solving architect problems, moral quandaries on BART, Keith Hernandez’ wife and Julia Salazar, the … Continue reading Episode #190: Bageling. →

In this, the second of two “lost episodes,” Rosen comes in hot, enraged at an incompetent architect and his wife’s inability to share his desire for vengeance. Goldbrener responds with his own story of remodeling woe, dragging the Crown Prince of Plate Glass in for good measure. Meanwhile, Julia Salazar had another bad week, and … Continue reading Episode #189: 23 and Me, bad Jews, bad architects →

The boys are pleased as punch to return to the Twilight Lounge after a three-week (!) absence, but they are not eager to share their dinners. Listen in as Rosen skirts the boundaries of civilized discourse as they discuss his “special eating needs,” then stick around to hear tales of Julius and Ethel Rosenberg’s son, … Continue reading Episode #188: Who is a Jew? It’s nice to share. →

Semitic crisis hits the Twilight Lounge this week after Rosen reveals that his wife finds Woody Allen movies “whiny and unwatchable,” causing her husband to wonder if she’s aware who she married. Fortunately, the boys bounce back, turning their attention to 3-percenter Paul Ryan and Jew-hating English politicians before Rosen pushes all the furniture to … Continue reading Episode #187: Nation-states, whiny Jews, 3-percenters →

This week, the boys reconvene in the Twilight Lounge to discuss Rosen’s adventures with mice, Goldbrener’s complete mastery over gophers and a panoply of Jewish issues and news. Should Facebook permit allow the ravings of Holocaust deniers? What would Steve Jobs do? If a Jew-hater gets 25 percent of the primary vote in Contra Costa … Continue reading Episode #186: Of mice, Sascha, Mark and Birthright →

Would you feel comfortable driving your neighbor’s car? Rosen does not, which is only one of a litany of gripes, fears and anxieties he brings into the Twilight Lounge this week. Fortunately, Goldbrener is waiting with some real-life advice and tales of eating salami and bread until he runs out of one ingredient. Meanwhile, in … Continue reading Episode #185: Draymond good, Waters, Luther, bad. →

Rosen is back from what he considered a sub-par road trip (too little time, too many missed opportunities), which the boys use as a jumping off point to explore the nature of Texas, the Navajo term for white people, retiring on a boat, why Rosen thinks all San Franciscans should be forced to take road … Continue reading Episode #184: Quotas, Mormons, greedy landlords guy →

This week, the boys spend almost the entire hour discussing various local, national and global topics, never really getting around to asking if something (is) Good for the Jews. No matter,  for this week listeners will learn how to discern between a dangerously crazy person and a “normal” San Franciscan (hint: one of them is … Continue reading Episode #183: Odds, ends and aggressive homeless guys →

You want bellyaching? This week, Rosen is literally bellyaching, thanks to a mysterious stomach ailment. Fortunately, he’s well enough to share his renewed love for the Steve Miller Band and to keep you up-to-date on the latest Screwy Louie shenanigans, which inspire a long discussion about intersectionality and the dangers of aligning oneself with a … Continue reading Episode #182: Jewish panic loop, screwy Louie →

Welcome back to a fully-occupied Twilight Lounge, where this week we find a reflective Goldbrener, in the wake of his youngest daughter’s high school graduation, considering the meaning of parenthood and, eventually, the statement made by Lady Gaga’s meat dress. Rosen wants to discuss Jewish issues, though, so the boys move onto news both good (Brandeis … Continue reading Episode #181: Brain drain, Goldbrener reflects →

Only got half the time and only need half the hosts this week? We have just what you need. Faced with the prospect of a missed episode thanks to Goldbrener’s prior commitments, Rosen steps up and gives you a half-hour of solo (Is it) Good for the Jews? performance, skipping all the small talk and … Continue reading Episode #180: Rosen goes solo! →

Welcome to the Twilight Lounge, an intact basement gathering space free of puddles, suds and floors made of mud and dirt. Here you will find Rosen and Goldbrener, together again to discuss matters crucial to Jewish life: is it possible to vote for Mayor in San Francisco without being exposed as a bigot? How can … Continue reading Episode #179: Jewish news bonanza! →

Rosen enters the Twilight Lounge with an axe to grind: the city of San Francisco has taken his 32-gallon garbage and recycling cans and replaced them with an enormous recycling can and a tiny garbage can. Having quickly established that you can’t keep The Man off your back, he tries to steer the conversation toward … Continue reading Episode #178: More Gaza, tiny garbage cans →