Iranian comedian - Marvin Kharrazi

Marvin "Krazy" Kharrazi is a Iranian-American Jew who (I'm not making this up) quit law school to follow his dream of being a stand-up comedian. His act goes through his identity as a Jew, an Iranian, his religion and it's history, plus lots of sex jokes.

An article from Forward back in 2005 talks about and interviews Dan Ahdoot and Marvin Kharrazi. Marvin is interviewed as "the other Iranian Jewish comedian" in a Jewish Journal piece.

Krazy Kharrazi has his own YouTube channel. And he's on Facebook.

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

Carry on watching... Part 5, Part 6, Part 7 and Part 8.

Short dirty jokes

Persian Perversian - Short, Dirty Jokes by Marvin Kharrazi - watch more funny videos

Matzah and Passover

Yemeni Jews under threat?

There have been lots of reports that Yemen's tiny remaining Jewish population (around 300 people) is under threat from Islamists and that the Yemeni government is unable to protect those families.

Despite a long history in Yemen that pre-dates Islam many Jews felt pressure on them (from Zionist organisations and Yemenis alike) to move to Israel. The latest tragedy in Yemen will probably result in the end of the Jewish community there, even though those remaining Yemeni Jews are adamant they will stay.

Minority groups are always at risk of pogroms and violence and religion seems more likely the cause than a restraining factor. Whilst the Abrahamic faiths swing between God consuming whole groups of people and prohibiting collective punishments:

The fathers shall not be put to death for the children, neither shall the children be put to death for the fathers; every man shall be put to death for his own sin. -- Deuteronomy 24:16

... they still put forward covers and excuses for ideas and actions that right-thinking people ought to find absurd and reprehensible.

Iran's Jews, Perisan Jews and Jews of Iranian descent

Iran's Jews don't just live in Los Angeles, New York and Israel. They live in Iran too. They are not an incredibly visible population, but they are a part of life there. There are two snippets of a documentary about the history of the Jews of Iran and their lives.

The 43 Group - when men were mensch

The 43 Group were (mainly) Jewish and (a few) gentile ex-servicemen and woman who, coming back from the defeat of Hitler and the Fascists in Europe, decided to take a stand against the homegrown Fascists in Britain. Led by the affable Morris Beckman and Gerry Flamberg, they stuck it to the Fascists with fist, boot and brains, defended their areas with passion and discipline and ensured that Fascism never established itself in the UK.

They occupied a small window in time where London large working-class Jewish communities in its East End, the Left and the communists were well-organised, British Jews and ex-servicemen has been drilled and hardened by combat in Europe and many were only just learning of the atrocities committed by the Nazis. This group was a shining example of what it meant to be a mensch (in Yiddish: מענטש).

Here's a much too short, but fitting tribute and insight...