By Donald H. Harrison

SAN DIEGO, Calif.— Our Jewish license plate collection has officially gone coast-to-coast, national, continental.  To our seven samples, to date, from California, we now add one from Florida.  By rules of alphabetization, this Jewish message goes first, in fact.  A Mensch means that the person who drives this car is an upright, outstanding person; a role model; a credit to the community, someone who is kind, gentle, philanthropic, and, of course, modest.  

We thank Bruce Lowitt for sending in the Florida plate, which is interesting in its design.  Beneath the letters of A Mensch, or the letters and numbers that appear on standard-issue plates, is the outline of the State of Florida, which looks something like a bent knee getting ready to kick Al Gore right out of the 2000 presidential race.  

There are two oranges as well, a tribute to that state's citrus industry. (Whenever Californians visit Florida, someone there asks us to sample their orange juice versus California's.  When we drink it politely, they ask insistently, "well, well, orange y'all gonna say something?"  We'd say your oranges are tastier, but that would be pulp fiction.).  

There's an example of blatant boosterism on the Florida license plate—the claim to be the "Sunshine State."  Yeah, like when you're not having hurricanes, you mean.  

The combination of all three elements—the unusual shape of the state, the oranges, and the promise of sunshine— is meant to induce you to check out the state's tourism-promoting website, listed at the top of the plate: myflorida.com, 

However, when you get to the website, you may think it  looks like it was designed by government committee.  In Florida's defense, the state really is much prettier than that!

Anyway, below is our growing collection.  Please send in examples of Jewish plates from your state to sdheritage@cox.net, and we'll post them.  Might even write an essay about them.

P.S.  We're only teasing about Florida; it's a wonderful place to visit.



        
Yiddish: Upright, outstanding person      Yididish:  For you, only good            Hebrew: In peace

     
               Yiddish: Grandma                              Yiddish: Grandma 2                    Yiddish: Woe is me, mom

 
    Biblical: A life as long as Moses'               Yiddish: Grandpa