The Elliot Resnick Show

Ever wonder what life is like in prison?  Wonder no longer.  Thank to my activities on January 6, 2021, I was sentenced to four months behind bars.  I reported to prison (in Danbury, CT) on Election Day and was pardoned by President Trump on Inauguration Day.  I tell you all about it in this episode.List of Books I Read In Prison: www.brennbooks.com/booksireadinprison

Rhodesia had a reputation of being "more British than Britain" — and that was its undoing.  Instead of giving up the proud aristocratic British tradition that reigned for centuries in England and the United States, Rhodesia held fast to it.  And so, in the 1960s, the USSR and America and England conspired to destroy it.  And they succeeded.  Prosperous free Rhodesia disappeared, and backwards murderous Zimbabwe took its place.  It's a fascinating — and very disturbing — story. Will Tanner, co-founder of The American Tribune, also offers his thoughts on Donald Trump, noblesse oblige, and no-fault divorce. Will Tanner's Substack channel: www.theamericantribune.news.Will Tanner on X: @Will_Tanner_1Elliot Resnick's website: www.BrennBooks.com.

On September 19, I was sentenced to four months in prison and fined $10,539 for participating in the January 6 election protest.  A week later, I was interviewed by Frank Morano, host of "The Other Side of Midnight" on WABC radio in New York.  We discussed my sentencing, my experience being kicked off yet another dating service, and Rabbi Meir Kahane's humane solution to the Arab-Israel conflict.  

Are the Proud Boys bad people?  Did we really cause $2.5 million in damage?  Could the Right have played Jan. 6 differently?  Answering these questions and more is David Sumrall, founder of StopHate.com, the filmmaker of three documentaries on Jan. 6, a licensed investigator with access to all government videos of Jan. 6, and president of the board of the American Gulag Chronicles.David Sumrall's website: StopHate.comElliot Resnick's new book: In a World Gone MadElliot Resnick's new writing course: Ten Tips to Vastly Improve Your Writing

I was sentenced in a DC court today for my role in the events of January 6, 2021.  This is my response.

Candace Owens claims that Israeli leaders and Israel supporters in the U.S. are "Jewish supremacists."  She also claims Israel harbors pedophiles.  Is there any truth to these claims?

His mother gave birth to him at 14, and his father tried killing him when he was five.  Marty Goodman, a highly successful businessman in West Bloomfield, MI, didn't have an easy childhood, and a rabbi's ill-chosen words turned him away from Judaism when he was a teenager.  But the birth of his son 20 years later changed everything.  Marty Goodman describes his journey back to Torah and plays some of his original musical compositions.His shiurim, lectures, and music are available on http://bais-mordechai.com.

How did I misjudge Candace Owens so badly?  I explain.

Moshe Feiglin has been working to become Israel's prime minister for 25 years now, but he believes Israel's current problems may finally propel him to power.  "Reality is making our campaign," he said.  If he is prime minister, Israel will conquer Gaza, rebuild Gush Katif, and expel the enemy population in it, he said.  And he would have secured the hostages' release if he were prime minister, he said, by starving the tunnels of energy and threatening every terrorist in it with death and burial in pigs' stomachs unless they bring the hostages out of the tunnels with them.Books by Moshe Feiglin: The War of DreamsWhere There Are No MenInterview books by Elliot ResnickMovers & Shakers, Vol. 1Movers & Shakers, Vol. 2Movers & Shakers, Vol. 3

When did people start making schlissel challah?  Why do women light multiple Shabbos candles when the Gemara says to light one?  Why do we say "Shalom Aleichem" at Kiddush Levanah when according to Shulchan Aruch we should say "Shalom Alecha"?  Rabbi Dr. Zvi Ron, author of Jewish Customs: Exploring Common and Uncommon Minhagim, answers these fascinating questions and more.

Professor Bryan Caplan, a bestselling author and economist at George Mason University, discusses some of his most controversial books, Don't Be a Feminist, The Case Against Education, Selfish Reasons to Have More Kids, and Build, Baby, Build.  

Rabbi Ben Packer, director of the Jerusalem Heritage House, returns to give an update on the Israel-Gaza war.   Why is Israel giving free food to its enemy?  Should Israel establish Jewish settlements in Gaza?  Was giving the Sinai Desert to Egypt a mistake?  Why did Israel respond with a whimper after Arabs set Yehoshua's tomb on fire the other week?  Will a true Jewish leader ever take charge in Israel?  If yes, how?  Rabbi Packer answers these questions and more.

Liberals (and a handful of conservatives) believe dropping the atom bombs on Japan in August 1945 was immoral.  But what was the alternative?  Could the U.S. have won the war in a less bloody fashion?  Could American and Japanese lives have been saved?  Mike Cote – a highly knowledgeable historian whose articles have been published by National Review and The Federalist – discusses these fascinating questions and more.Mike Cote's website: https://rationalpolicy.comCote's articles discussed on this podcast:  "Dropping the Atomic Bombs Was Good, Actually""The Seafloor Is Now a Theater of War – and America Is Not Prepared"

Mrs. Sarah Karmely is a Mashhadi Jew who was born in India, grew up in England, married in Italy, and now lives in America.  An author, teacher, marriage counselor, and international lecturer, she started becoming frum after her husband suddenly became totally paralyzed and then just as suddenly – and inexplicably – started talking and walking only after hours after receiving a beracha from the Lubavitcher Rebbe. 

Yeshiva University has a long history of tolerating extreme left-wing views and activities on campus (while showing little tolerance for extreme right-wing views).  To cite just two examples: It employed a transgender professor for 15 years and continues to employ a Bible(!) professor who advocates ignoring the Torah's views on homosexuality.  Can YU therefore continue to call itself a Torah institution?  Jonathan Gross, formerly a rabbi in Omaha, Nebraska (who sold chametz to Warren Buffett), and today a civil rights attorney, joins the program to discuss this question.Books by Rabbi Jonathan Gross:AI Vey: Jewish Thoughts on Thinking MachinesValues Investing: An Omaha Rabbi Learns Torah From Warren BuffettOne of the books YU banned from its Seforim Sale:Kahane on the Parsha: Over 100 Divrei Torah on War, Faith, and the Future of the Jewish StateThe subject of Elliot Resnick's canceled lecture:America First: The Story of Sol Bloom, the Most Powerful Jew in Congress During the Holocaust

When you speak to young children, end your sentences with a period, not a question mark.  So advises Mrs. Rebecca Masinter, a mother of six and the author of a weekly parenting column based on the parsha.  (She's also a great-great niece of Reb Elyah Lopian.)  Among her other pieces of advice: Project confidence in front of your children, don't be afraid to be different, trust your intuition, hold off on the cell phone, and don't rush to bring you kid to an "expert."  You're the expert when it comes to your child, she argues. Mrs. Masinter's website: www.mothersguidance.comBook mentioned in the interview: Bad Therapy: Why the Kids Aren't Growing Up

Is Christianity an enemy of Judaism or its "daughter religion"?   Rabbi Dr. Moshe Miller, a professor at Touro College, discusses his new book on the views of Rav Yaakov Emden, Rav Yaakov Ettlinger, Rav Esriel Hildesheimer, and Rav Samson Raphael Hirsch on non-Jews and Christianity.Rabbi Miller's book: Samson Raphael Hirsch's Universalism and the German-Jewish Quest for Emancipation

Is Candace Owens an anti-Semite?  Should we be joining the name-calling brigade?  Do we want to destroy a force for good over one issue?  Does calling people anti-Semitic accomplish anything, even when we're right?book mentioned in the episode: America First: The Story of Sol Bloom, the Most Powerful Jew in Congress During the Holocaust

Avi Ciment – a proud Modern Orthodox Jew, inspirational speaker, and son of the first Shomer Shabbos mayor in America – diagnoses some of the problems in his own community.  Among the issues he addresses: texting on Shabbos, homosexuality, talking in shul, and the divine authorship of the Torah.Avi Ciment's book: Real Questions, Real Answers

In wake of the horrific attacks of Oct. 7, more and more people regret not paying closer attention to the warnings of Rabbi Meir Kahane.  But not YU.  In a stunning display of intolerance and vindictiveness, its Seforim Sale is once again categorically refusing to sell Kahane on the Parsha.  Write to its CEO, Yosef Silver, to protest: ysilver@TheSeforimSale.com.Buy the banned book here: Kahane on the ParshaAlso banned: Revolution or Referendum Uncomfortable Questions for Comfortable Jews

Chazal advocate early marriage and frown upon divorce.  Yet, several so-called frum organizations and community leaders are now discouraging early marriage and encouraging divorce.  Rabbi Hillel Handler – a longtime activist who testified in Congress in support of the nomination of Robert Bork to the Supreme Court in 1987 – addresses this scandal.

A popular corporate speaker who once caught Bill Gates' attention when he refused to lecture on Shabbos, Kivi Bernhard is the son of a distinguished South African rabbi, a judo medalist, and the author of Leopardology: The Hunt for Profit in a Tough Global Economy.  He's also a proud Jew, which has helped him become a highly successful businessman.

Did frum Jews – and rabbanim – in America fail their brethren during the Holocaust?  Yes, according to Zalman Alpert, a longtime reference librarian at Yeshiva University and an expert on the topic.  In this wide-ranging interview, Alpert discusses the Holocaust, Lubavitch, unfortunate developments at YU, self-hating Jews, the rise of "sectarianism," and more.book mentioned in the interview: America First: The Story of Sol Bloom, the Most Powerful Jew in Congress During the Holocaust – by Elliot Resnick

Did frum Jews – and rabbanim – in America fail their brethren during the Holocaust?  Yes, according to Zalman Alpert, a longtime reference librarian at Yeshiva University and an expert on the topic.  In this wide-ranging interview, Alpert discusses the Holocaust, Lubavitch, unfortunate developments at YU, self-hating Jews, the rise of "sectarianism," and more.

It sounds too good to be true, but New College, a woke institution of higher learning in Florida, is in the process of becoming conservative/classically liberal thanks to Governor Ron DeSantis.  Can this be just the first of similar transformations around the country?  Bruce Abramson, PhD – the author of several books and New College's recently-hired dean of admissions – thinks so.  He also believes that the new New College is a perfect fit for motivated Jewish students looking for an intellectually curious pro-Israel campus.

What can we do about the recent rise in anti-Semitism?  Clearly the growth of America's Muslim population isn't helping matters (it's doubled since 9/11 thanks to our immigration policies), but no one seems interested in tackling this issue.  So will the problem get worse?  Do Jews even belong in America?  Dov Hikind, founder of Americans Against Antisemitism, addresses these questions and more.guest's website: https://americansaa.org. 

Israel needs a Kach prime minister now more than ever.  So is there a movement to lift the ban of Kach?  Yekutiel Ben-Yaakov – who served as chief of operations for Rabbi Meir Kahane (and his son) – says no such movement currently exists, but he argues that it may be unnecessary.  Circumstances are pushing Israelis into seeking Kahane-like solutions almost against their will, he says.Revolution or Referendum – Rabbi Kahane's last bookKahane on the Parsha

What's the object of war?  Should America care about Israel's war against Hamas?  Do we want it involved?  Should Israel target Arab civilians?  How innocent are civilians after all?  Listen to an interesting array of arguments and quotes from such people as the Netziv, Rabbi Meir Kahane, Ze'ev Jabotinsky, William Tecumseh Sherman, and Winston Churchill. 

Should Israel reduce Gaza to rubble?  Reestablish Gush Katif?  Kick the Arabs out?  Rabbi Ben Packer – director of the Jerusalem Heritage House and co-director of Young Jewish Conservatives – discusses these questions and more.Rabbi Ben Packer's Facebook pageArutz 7 article by Elliot Resnick

Since Israel virtually worships America, why not learn from America how to win a war?  The U.S. last won a decisive military victory when Japan surrendered to it on September 2, 1945, leading to 80 years of peace between the two countries.  Not a bad outcome.  So how did America do it?  I explain in this episode."How to Win a War" – by Elliot Resnick

Destroy Hamas?  Obliterate Gaza?  Kill civilians?  What would Rabbi Meir Kahane do if he were alive and prime minister today?  Shmuel Sackett and Lenny Goldberg – two students of Rabbi Kahane and prominent personalities in their own right – answer this question in two no-holds barred interviews.

Can mefarshim argue with Chazal?  Was a manuscript from the Rambam's son really lying in a library unnoticed for 700 years?  Why does the Ralbag say Hashem doesn't know the future?  Rabbi Yonatan Kolatch – a longtime educator and author of three excellent books on the mefarshei HaChumash – discusses these fascinating questions and more.Masters of the Word, Vol. 1 – by Rabbi Yonatan KolatchMasters of the Word, Vol. 2 – by Rabbi Yonatan KolatchMasters of the Word, Vol. 3 – by Rabbi Yonatan Kolatch

Moving to Israel is a Zionist ideal.  It's also a Torah imperative.  But black-hat (or "yeshivish") Jews often approach this imperative sans all the halachic zeal and stringency that they normally bring to Torah instructions.  Rabbi Yoel Berman – a member of the yeshiva world himself – is associated with several organizations devoted to making the Torah case for moving to Israel as well as helping black-hat Jews find their place in the Holy Land.  Rabbi Berman argues that many of the practical reasons black-hat Jews used to offer for not moving to Israel simply no longer apply.Living in the Land: Firsthand Accounts From Bnei Torah and Their Familieslifeintheland.comwww.aviraderetzyisroel.org

Yes, you read that correctly.  An Orthodox dating website decided that I am not worthy of getting married due to my participation in the events of January 6.  People who subscribe to heresy and openly violate Torah laws can be set up by the matchmakers on SawYouAtSinai, but I cannot.  I was informed on Monday that I've been banned from the site.The frum world is beginning to embrace cancel culture and won't turn back unless we speak up now.   To protest, e-mail:support@sawyouatsinai.com and marc@sawyouatsinai.com (Marc Goldmann is the company's CEO)If you wish to protest Ami Magazine canceling me in 2021, e-mail: rabbi@amimagazine.com and info@amimagazine.com.

Almost every parenting expert tells you to give your child unconditional love.  They're wrong.  This advice, based on secular modern-day psychology, signals to a child that he can act improperly with impunity.  He never need fear of losing the love of those he holds most dear.  Why in the world would you want to give your child that message?  Why would you want to make acting errantly easier rather than harder?

Are the "lost tribes" living in plain sight in Afghanistan?  Can the biblical plague of hail stones with fire inside be a rare but natural phenomenon?  Is our vision of the American dream a creation of Hollywood Jews?  Three-time Emmy winner filmmaker Simcha Jacobovici discusses all these fascinating questions and more.documentaries discussed in this interview:Quest for the Lost TribesThe Exodus DecodedHollywoodism: Jews, Movies, and the American DreamElliot Resnick's new book:America First: The Story of Sol Bloom, the Most Powerful Jew in Congress During the Holocaust

A radical idea only supported by Rabbi Meir Kahane and his followers?  Hardly.  In fact, Theodor Herzl, David Ben-Gurion, Chaim Weizmann, Herbert Hoover, and Franklin Delano Roosevelt all repeatedly expressed support for transferring the Arabs out of the Land of Israel.A Historical Survey of Proposals to Transfer Arabs From Palestine: 1895-1947 – by Rabbi Dr. Chaim Simons(read the book online for free)

Solid proof and comprehensive research should be prerequisites for calling someone one of the worst epithets in America.  And yet, so many of us are dispensing with these elementary steps in discussing perhaps the only Democrat in America to bravely defy the Covid consensus. The Real Anthony Fauci – by Bobby KennedyBobby Kennedy, Jr.'s opening statement at a congressional hearing last week

In 1999, Tamir Goodman was featured in Sports Illustrated and hailed as the "Jewish Jordan."  Amazingly, Tamir was an Orthodox Jew, playing for an Orthodox high-school, and seemed headed for the University of Maryland on a full scholarship with the understanding that he wouldn't play on Shabbos.  Unfortunately, Tamir's career did not unfold as he and so many others had hoped.  He explains why in this interview and also discusses his current projects, which include a book, a film, a basketball camp, and a popular basketball invention. The Jewish Jordan's Triple Threat by Tamir GoodmanSports Illustrated story on Tamir Goodman (see also here)www.TamirGoodman.com

Everyone wants to know the answer.  What can we do?  What should we do?  How do we sell Judaism to teenagers? But what if we're asking the wrong question?  What if the problem begins with the amount of free time and the aimless feeling our system gives so many teenagers?  What if we started challenging kids rather than coddling them?  What if we made school more rigorous?  What if we encouraged teenagers to get jobs and marry as soon as they finished high school?

We hear it all the time: China will soon overtake the U.S. as the world's greatest economy.  Okay, so what?  Gordon Chang, a premier expert on China, argues that China is not merely another great power.  It actually seeks to rule the world and believes it has a divine duty to do so.  It's ruthless and dangerous, and unless we wake up soon, a new Dark Age may soon be upon us, Chang warns.The Coming Collapse of China by Gordon ChangThe Great U.S.-China Tech War by Gordon ChangGordon Chang on Twitter

Three decades ago, a small group of researchers and rabbis said they rediscovered the chilazon and the process of making techeles.  Were they telling the truth?  If yes, should we jumping at the opportunity to fulfill a mitzvah de'Oraisa for the first time in 1,500 years?  Shmuel Sackett, founder of the Am Yisrael Chai foundation, discusses this topic as well as Arab terror, Jewish terror, and more.www.tekhelet.comwww.amyisroelchai.comTecheles booklet by Rabbi Meir HellmanThe Rarest Blue by Baruch Stermaninterview with Dr. Ari Greenspan

Mistranslations, unattributed interpretations that undermine the meaning of the mishnah.  You would expect these in a Reform publication.  But they actually appear in an ArtScroll publication.  How did such problematic material slip by ArtScroll's editors?  And what excuse does this sefer's compiler have for distorting Chazal's words so that they align with the tenets of the self-esteem movement?

Should we appoint a king in the State of Israel?  Should we ascend Har Habayis?  Are we pronouncing Hebrew correctly?  Rabbi Avi Grossman – an associate at Machon Shilo and the former senior editor of the Koren Steinsaltz Tanakh in English – answers these controversial questions (as well as the one in the episode title).  Be prepared to reexamine some of your most basic assumptions about G-d's expectations of us.Haggadat Hapesah by Rabbi Avi GrossmanEntering the Temple Mount – in Halacha and Jewish History Outlawed Visitors on al-Haram al-Sharif

Modern man likes to dress casually.  Indeed, he often prefers jeans with holes than without them.  Is it just a matter of taste?   "Necktie Salvage" doesn't think so.  He believes modern clothing styles reflect, and reinforce, the moral deterioration of Western civilization.https://twitter.com/NecktieSalvage

We've heard it countless times: Chassidic yeshivahs are failing their students by not providing them with a proper secular education.  But are they?  And if they are, is it the government's business to right this wrong?  Frank Morano – host of "The Other Side of Midnight" on WABC Talk Radio in New York – interviewed me on this topic a few months ago.  Here is how it went.

"Stay far away from a false matter," the Bible tells us.  But how seriously do we take this prohibition?  Boruch Delman, director of the Sefas Tamim Foundation, explains why the Talmud calls truth "God's seal," why some people lie, why an AI is unlikely to destroy humanity if it pursues truth, and why a person may possibly sign a user agreement he hasn't read.www.everydayemes.org

Is it "American" for the government to shut down schools, businesses and houses of worship during a pandemic?  Is it "American" for the government to dictate to parents what they should teach their children?  Are Republicans too nice to win the culture wars?  Should Jews send their kids to Hilldale College?  Should they take a second look at Pat Buchanan? These are just some of the questions addressed by Professor David Azerrad, an idealistic and clear-eyed thinker who was recently featured on Tucker Carlson's hour-long interview program.

It's hard to see how moral claims can be made without reference to God.  But can they be made without reference to divine revelation?  Surprisingly, some of the greatest thinkers in Jewish history – the Rambam, Ramban, Ran, and others – say they can.

"It's a well-known law that Esav hates Yaakov."  What does that mean?  Did G-d create everyone to hate Jews?  How should Jews regard Christians?  How should they view secular atheists?  These are just some of the questions Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein – director of Interfaith Affairs at the Simon Wiesenthal Center – answers in this interview.Books by Rabbi Adlerstein:Netivot ShalomBe'er Hagolah

If a politician violates a statute, he might find himself in jail.  But if he enacts a disastrous policy that kills thousands, he gets off scot-free.  How does that work?