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Strawman arguments are funny things. Sometimes they have the power to shift an entire argument and other times they are undeniably self-defeating. To illustrate this, we are going to look at the current ongoing example, which just so happens to be the largest scaled strawman argument of my lifetime. The definition of “strawman argument” we will be working with for purposes of this discussion is “an intentionally misrepresented proposition that is set up because it is easier to defeat than an opponent’s real argument.”

Recently, the Senate unanimously passed a bill that would make Daylight Saving Time permanent. Of course, many of us immediately thought about the halachic implications of this change. Most notably, the winter months would be a very difficult time for Shacharis, as the early risers who already need to be mindful of the clock, would have to wait an extra hour for talis and t’filin. Minyanim would not be able to think about beginning until 7 a.m. here in New York, and some days would be even later. Hashkamah minyanim on Shabbos would be affected as well. This is a greater problem for shuls that have one room wherein the second minyan starts after Hashkamah ends.

In the midst of its ongoing war, Ukraine made the difficult decision to enact martial law and require all men between the ages of 18 and 60 to remain in the country to defend it from invading Russian forces. This has led to a large number of women and children fleeing the country without their husbands, brothers, fathers, and grandfathers. It is truly tragic, as the last time these families possibly see each other alive is being torn apart at the border.

Last week, one of the most heavily-anticipated albums in Jewish music history was released to the public. The fourth installation of Abie Rotenberg’s all-English songs came out in 2003, and 19 years later, we have an album that many of us thought we’d never hear: Journeys 5. Many of the classic messages and themes are present throughout the playlist. You have the Shabbos song (“Baruch Hashem – It’s Shabbos!”), the widow’s lament song (“The Ring”), and of course, the story about the hapless individual (“Lucky Fingers Max”), each sung by an appropriately selected guest star of Jewish music. There are also two tracks dedicated to the memory of legendary musician Moshe Yess, and an updated version of “We’ve Got the Music.”

President Biden has delivered his first-ever State of the Union address. At least I assume he did. At the time of writing, the SOU is scheduled for Tuesday, March 1, so by the time you read this, it will have happened. It’s entirely possible that the President will have addressed many of these issues in his speech. But I’m not going to wait for that because like we do every year, it’s time to review the President’s year. For those unfamiliar with this, we give the good bits of the Biden Administration an up and the bad bits a down. So let’s get into upping and downing the first year of the Biden Administration.

Why do people like Joe Rogan?

This is a question I’ve been grappling with for about three years now. For those of you who are somehow unaware of who Joe Rogan is, allow me to give you a short background. Joe Rogan first came into the public eye as a comedian who hosted the popular television game show Fear Factor back in the early-to-mid-2000s. Since then, he has become a commentator for UFC, and developed the most-listened-to podcast in the world. Rogan’s daily listenership is well over 10 million. For reference, the next closest daily podcast belongs to the New York Times, whose The Daily podcast brings in about 4 million listeners per episode.