Emotions soar at annual CJL Latke-Hamantaschen debate

On Tuesday night, nosh lovers from all walks of life crowded into the Whig Hall Senate Chamber to participate in a lively debate over which Jewish food reigned supreme: latkes or hamantaschen.

Senate president Matt Butler ’12 introduced the debate, which was co-sponsored by the Center for Jewish Life. Butler cited the contest’s concordance with the “hard-core academic debating and public policy issues” that the Whig-Cliosophic Society routinely discusses.

Butler is also a member of The Daily Princetonian Editorial Board.

Representing the hamantaschen side were Dean of Religious Life Alison Boden and Alexis Kleinman ’12. Latkes were supported by anthropology professor Alan Mann and Ben Jubas ’14.

Kleinman is also an executive editor for Street for the ‘Prince.’ Jubas is a former copy editor.

Jacob Lowenstein ’11 moderated the discussion, acknowledging that the topic “can be a sensitive subject for a lot of people.” A coin toss decided which team could choose who went first. The hamantaschen team won and elected to go second.

Jubas introduced the case for latkes with the argument that the food’s importance in human history stemmed from the latke meteor that collided with Earth 65 million years ago, to the latke’s role in evolutionary development.

Jubas also discussed the latke’s religious significance, referencing the Bible and citing the Dome of the Rock’s resemblance to a latke.

Jubas concluded his argument by attacking the opposing team’s favored treat. Citing the hamantaschen’s resemblance to the tricornered hat worn by Benedict Arnold, Jubas claimed that hamantaschen lovers were traitors to the American people.

The floor then went to the hamantaschen supporters.

As the first to speak in favor of the hamantaschen, Boden’s argument relied heavily on Scripture.

“We all know God wrote the Bible. We know this because it is called the word of God. God wrote it. Amen; praise God,” she said, with a hand-raise of approval from Kleinman.

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Boden then questioned the latke’s significance. “I did not find the lowly latke mentioned anywhere in Scripture,” she said. “I looked for related words. Pancake? No. Potato? No. Greasy? No.”

She concluded her argument with the assertion that the Temple in Jerusalem was built around a gargantuan hamantaschen.

“Clearly God prefers hamantaschen. It is the superior treat. Praise God; amen; hallelujah,” Boden said.

Presenting the latke party’s rebuttal was Mann, who took an anthropological approach in his argument for the latke’s superiority.

“I’m going to fall back on my discipline,” Mann said of anthropology, adding that he’d “often fallen on my discipline and sometimes people get hurt.”

“I would like to point out to you that we have definitive evidence that the latke has an antiquity far greater than anything that has ever happened,” he said. “It’s ante-antediluvian!”

Mann jokingly cited, with the help of clip art, the apparent discovery of latkes at Qafzeh Cave in northern Israel where the oldest human remains were excavated.

Kleinman delivered the rebuttal for the hamantaschen team. She praised the nutritional value of the hamantaschen, explaining that the treat is comprised of nearly all the food groups in the food pyramid, “whereas the potato pancake is merely a potato — a waste of your time, a waste of your energy and, frankly, a waste of a potato.”

Kleinman maintained throughout her argument that potatoes “are a sad and disgusting food” and stressed the versatility of hamantaschen.

“There’s only one type of latke, and only two socially acceptable toppings: apple sauce and sour cream. Bland,” she said.

She also highlighted the aesthetic appeal of the hamantaschen over the latke and even noted a Princeton connection between the hamantaschen and the Triangle Club.

“It is not called Princeton’s Famous ‘Amorphous Blob’ Show,” she said.

In the vein of Jubas’s argument for the latke, Kleinman appealed to the audience’s patriotism in her conclusion. “I have one question for you. Do you hate America?” she asked.

The decision was ultimately left to the audience, who filled out their ballots during a brief concert performed by Koleinu, the Jewish campus a cappella group. According to the judge panel, comprised of Kerry Brodie ’12, Kenny Anhalt ’14, Zach Liebmann ’11 and Rebecca Kaufman ’11, the popular winner was the latke, but due to apparent voter fraud the hamantaschen was declared the winner.

The event was co-organized by Abby Klionsky ’14, Rebecca Scharfstein ’12 and Danielle Kutasov ’14.

Klionsky is also a copy editor for the 'Prince.'

“It was a lot of fun to even get the reactions of professors who couldn’t participate,” Klionsky said. “They said that they want to participate in the future, so we kind of have a big database of people now.”