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Ian Shaffer: set the template for medical management

By GERRY POSNER I ask myself every time I come across yet another Jewish psychiatrist from Winnipeg. Did Winnipeg have a factory that produced Jewish shrinks? Recently I came across yet another name of yet another very accomplished psychiatrist with Winnipeg roots: Ian Shaffer, a former River Heights resident.
Ian and his brother Marvin were the sons of the late Saul and Molly Shaffer. From his beginnings on Queenston Street, Ian has ended up with two residences – one in New York City and the other in Fort Myers, Florida – but with a few stops along the way.
It all began in Winnipeg when Ian graduated from the University of Manitoba in 1968 with a medical degree in psychiatry. Today, in addition to the MD following his name, Shaffer also has an MMM (Masters of Medical Management), CPE (Certified Physician Executive), and LFAPA (Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association). Recite that a hundred times and you still might not get it right.

Shaffer’s career as a psychiatrist didn’t follow the the traditional path of most graduates. Although he did maintain a practice in Child, Adolescent and Adult Psychiatry, focusing on assessment, planning and pharmacotherapy for a period of his career, he veered into what might be called a more managerial mode of medicine. Keep in mind that his work has encompassed medical licenses in four differerent jurisdictions: California, Virginia, New York, and Florida. As well, Ian is board certified with the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, the American Society of Addiction Medicine, the American Board of Quality Assurance Utilization Review Physicians, (a mouthful at any time of the day), and the American Board of Medical Management.

In 1973 when Shaffer was in private practice in both San Marino and Encino, California. Between 1973-1989 he worked as a practicing psychiatrist. Around 1989, he became affiliated with a group called the Western Health Associated Medical Group in Los Angeles. It was there his career took a different route as he became not only a medical practitioner but, in addition, one of two managing partners in a large psychiatric group that directed care programs providing mental health care to over 70,000 people. That seemed to launch Ian into the role of management in different capacities.
In 1991, he and his wife (the former Reeva Wolk of Winnipeg) moved to the Metro Washington, D.C. area, where Ian assumed the position of Vice President, Medical Affairs/Chief Medical Officer, providing oversight of clinical care management for over 37 million people. He had to manage 30 physicians and other management personnel. I suggest that you have to be able to handle people well in a position like that and clearly, Ian Shaffer had that skill set.
From that time forward, Ian has been involved in significant management and consulting roles for various health care systems. In 2011, right up to the present, among his many responsibilities, Ian was the principal consultant to Behavioral Health Management Solutions – PLLC. Even before establishing himself in that role, as Vice President and Executive Medical Director – the go-to guy responsible for behavioral health program management, he had been actively involved in working on behavioral health issues confronting military and veteran populations, also their families.
Shaffer’s career has also included working closely with several Fortune 100 companies, including IBM, General Motors, Chrysler, Shell Oil, Chevron, and others. On three occasions, he served as chairman of the Association of Behavioral Health and Wellness (ABHW for those familiar with the acronym). He also served on several federal government committees, including a three-year term on the National Advisory Committee for the Center for Mental Health Services. To put it succinctly, Ian has been around the block in terms of his working with large companies and, moreover with government at many levels. He has focussed on redesigning health programmes regarding the delivery of those programmes, also reimbursement for those programmes. What does that mean?

What it means for Ian Shaffer is that he is responsible for the development of various behavioral health programmes to meet New York State requirements for health benefits for indivdiuals with serious mental illness and substance use disorders. That includes large numbers of people with persistent and significant general mental illness. What strikes me immediately is that even though Ian is retired now, living in New York City and Florida, he has still been a regular part of a team assisting the Government of New York State with the purpose of trying to improve the care for residents of the state who suffer from mental illness and substance use disorders. This particular appointment was from the New York senate, no less. I say those are lofty heights for a kid from River Heights in Winnipeg once a long time ago.

Clearly, one of Shaffer’s greatest assets – and a reason why he has been and still is in demand throughout his career, is that he epitomizes what it means to be a strategic thinker, not simply an operator. He sees the big picture and then hires the people to implement his vision. He is also quick to acknowledge the benefits of his growing up in Winnipeg – where he learned to form bonds, relationships, and the importance of commitment and following through with your commitment.
Ian puts it this way: “ Reeva and I lived in Los Angeles for twenty-three years where relationships are a mile wide and an inch deep, but in Winnipeg, my relationships were an inch wide and and a mile deep. “ He also credits the excellent training he received at the Manitoba Medical School (and later at the LA County University of Southern California Medical Centre.)

Reeva and Ian do leave Fort Myers, Florida to get back to Winnipeg (not likely in the winter) for important occasions, such as his medical school reunions. They are the parents of four children, ten grandchildren and , get this – eight great grandchildren. His story is one I hope his grandkids learn and appreciate as it reflects a remarkably satisfying career where Ian Shaffer made a difference to so many others.

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Securing Your Account on PHBingo Login (GameZone)

The rising popularity of online casino platforms like GameZone has attracted many players eager to indulge in their favorite bingo games. As the number of users grows, so does the need for account security. Protecting personal data, playing progress, and account wallets has become vital due to the increase in online threats. Learning effective security techniques for PHBingo Login (GameZone) is essential for players, ensuring both safety and uninterrupted gameplay.

GameZone, a platform that features traditional and modern bingo games, stores sensitive information about user details, progress, and financial data. Without proper precautions, accounts may fall victim to unauthorized access, leading to loss of control, misuse of credentials, and exposure to significant risks. Following preventative measures will allow players to enjoy their favorite games worry-free.

Risks of Unauthorized Access in Online Bingo Play

Players using GameZone or similar platforms need to consider the potential consequences of compromised accounts. The inability to access an account, unauthorized transactions, and losing virtual credits are common issues resulting from poor security. Personal data, such as email addresses or payment information, is also at risk once hackers gain access.

While online casino platforms offer built-in security mechanisms, users carry the responsibility of implementing their own account protection solutions. Taking proactive steps, such as using strong passwords and enabling additional security layers, greatly reduces exposure to risks.

Steps to Secure Your PHBingo Account

1. Set a Strong, Unique Password

Having an easily guessed password, like “123456” or a birthdate, leaves accounts highly vulnerable. Strong passwords are critical for better security and protecting login details.

Strong password elements to consider:

  • A combination of uppercase and lowercase letters
  • Numbers and symbols
  • A length of at least 8–12 characters

Using different passwords for each account ensures that other platforms won’t be compromised if one is hacked. Players should create passwords that are unique and hard to decipher.

2. Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)

Two-factor authentication (2FA) provides an additional security layer on GameZone online platforms. When enabled, it requires a secondary verification code sent to a user’s mobile phone to complete the login process.

Benefits of using 2FA:

  • Prevents unauthorized access, even if passwords are exposed
  • Adds extra verification for every login attempt

This security feature is highly beneficial for players frequently engaging in multiplayer bingo games or downloading game applications. Gamers reduce unauthorized access risks significantly by implementing 2FA.

3. Avoid Logging in Over Public Wi-Fi

Connecting to GameZone through public Wi-Fi networks puts users at risk. Public or unsecured networks allow cybercriminals to intercept data on the network, including login credentials.

Safer alternatives include:

  • Using private and secure network connections at home.
  • Avoiding logins from shared or public devices.
  • Relying on mobile data for safer gameplay while traveling or away from home.

These preventive measures ensure a secure experience, wherever the player may be.

4. Update Devices and Apps Regularly

Neglected updates on devices or casino platforms expose users to software vulnerabilities. Regular updates deliver patches and fixes to enhance protection against hackers.

Best practices for keeping systems updated:

  • Install updates for operating systems and browsers at regular intervals.
  • Download GameZone apps and updates officially from trusted sources.
  • Avoid using third-party versions of GameZone applications.

Updated devices and applications offer smoother and more secure sessions, ensuring that accounts remain safeguarded.

5. Log Out After Playing Sessions

Failing to log out from GameZone accounts increases the risk of unauthorized access, especially on shared or public devices. Ensuring account disconnection after gameplay is a simple yet effective habit.

Steps to improve logout practices:

  • Avoid saving login details when using shared devices.
  • Clear cache and browsing data after accessing accounts.
  • Make it a point to log out systematically after every session.

Regularly logging out minimizes the chances of account breaches and maintains better security for PHBingo accounts.

6. Beware of Phishing Scams

Phishing scams involve fake emails or messages impersonating official GameZone communications to trick players into revealing login information. These scams often include links to malicious websites posing as the platform’s login page.

Signs of phishing schemes include:

  • Emails claiming “urgent account issues” requiring immediate action
  • Links to web pages that request sensitive login credentials
  • Emails sent from domains that look unofficial or are oddly spelled

Players should always enter their credentials through the official GameZone login page rather than clicking on suspicious links to avoid falling victim to such scams.

7. Monitor Account Activity Regularly

Checking account activity makes it easier to detect and resolve suspicious behavior or unauthorized logins. Reviewing recent account use helps players pinpoint breaches quickly.

Effective steps to manage account activity:

  • Change passwords immediately if irregular activity appears.
  • Reach out to GameZone support for assistance with securing compromised accounts.
  • Monitor recent logins and transactions for unrecognized activities.

Tracking account patterns ensures issues are addressed early, making it easier to control risks.

8. Use Secure Payment and Transaction Methods

Online bingo often involves linking accounts with payment methods. Securing financial data ensures that sensitive information isn’t exploited or mishandled.

Practical payment security tips include:

  • Using verified and reputable payment gateways.
  • Avoiding unauthorized transactions or sharing of payment details.
  • Double-checking URLs to ensure the payment page is official and secure.

Secure payment methods enhance the overall user experience while providing peace of mind for frequent players.

9. Avoid Sharing Account Credentials

Sharing login information with others, even with close friends, increases the risk of unauthorized access or account misuse. Keeping accounts private ensures better control over personal playing progress.

Reasons to avoid sharing login details:

  • Reduces the possibility of accidental account misuse.
  • Preserves account integrity and progress.
  • Prevents unknown individuals from accessing personal information.

Limiting account sharing eliminates these risks and ensures safety for all users.

10. Focus on Responsible Practices Alongside Security

Combining security precautions with responsible practices allows for a safe and balanced experience. GameZone promotes responsible practices by offering reminders and restrictions that prevent excessive gameplay.

By maintaining both security and healthy habits, players can enjoy a fun, worry-free environment.

Enhancing GameZone Experiences Through Security

Secure play for PHBingo accounts begins with adopting strong cybersecurity habits. Simple measures like using complex passwords, enabling two-factor authentication, and avoiding suspicious links create a robust system of protection. Regular account monitoring and updates further help reduce risks associated with online threats.

By reinforcing security steps, users gain confidence in their platforms, ensuring they can focus on enjoying PHBingo and other offerings worry-free.

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Today’s Antizionism is Jew-Hatred

By HENRY SREBRNIK The Jewish world has grown darker. I’m not going to compare the anti-Jewish hate that has spread across this and other countries since October 7, 2023, to the Holocaust, but we know that Jewish life has become far more precarious. And so much of the hatred flies under the rubric of so-called “antizionism,” with people claiming that this isn’t “antisemitism.” But this is a false dichotomy. And we know it when we see it.

“Antizionism” is not about the now arcane historical debates that occurred mainly within Jewish communities from the 19th century through 1948, in which those who became Zionists sought to actualize the Jewish ties to biblical Israel and recreate a modern state. By “Zionists,” today’s enemies are not referring to supporters of the 19th century self-liberation movement of the Jewish people, whose goal was to establish a national home. They known little of this history. They’ve never heard of Theodor Herzl, Ahad Ha’am, Ber Borochov, Ze’ev Jabotinsky, or Chaim Weizmann.

As a derogatory slur, a pejorative, it simply means “Jew,” the way earlier words, now archaic, used to. Some call Jews “Zios.” They mean the Jewish people, who exist in opposition to everything good in the world, and who are figures of emblematic wickedness. In this they simply update what Nazis said a century ago. Hitler, too, was an “antizionist,” along with his racial antisemitism. It attacks Jews, here in Western countries like Canada – in the cities where they live, in the universities they attend, in the publishing houses where they send their manuscripts, and in the entertainment world where they act and sing. 

Note that it calls itself antizionism, not anti-Israelism, so that the net can grab virtually every Jew who simply wants to see Israel not destroyed – and that’s the vast, vast majority. We Jews know what it means, regardless of what our enemies claim. Would anyone think that the term antisemitism means hatred of Semites? 

Clearly a ludicrous idea; it was invented in the 19th century by a German Jew-hater, Wilhelm Marr, to make it sound more “racially scientific.” No one is fooled by that, of course, nor should they be by so-called “antizionism.” In its effects, it is for Jews a distinction with a negligible difference. It is meant to portray Jews as villains, and while it may fool some gullible people, it will deceive very, very few of us.

After all, as Michel Coren noted in “Roald Dahl’s Antisemitism Feels Painfully Familiar,” in the British magazine the Spectator March 16, “most Jewish people do in fact to varying degrees support Israel, partly because centuries of bigotry, violence, massacre, and attempted genocide have given them little alternative. They may oppose Israeli policy, may condemn the current government, may even want radical compromises, but there’s still support. And in the current climate of leftist and Islamist triumphalism, it’s all Zionism and none of it acceptable.”

Anti-Zionism is marked by three core “libels”: that “Zionists” are colonizers, guilty of apartheid, and committing genocide. (Actually, the only time we were settler-colonialists was when we conquered Canaan, but that was God’s doing!) Anti-Israel activists incorporate historical manifestations of anti-Jewish discrimination under the guise of anti-Zionist political activism, from the blood libel to Nazi-era tropes, mixed with contemporary academic theories. Anti-Zionism acts as a container for these historical tropes, blending them together with progressive talking points.

George Washington University professor Daniel Schwartz, in “Vocabulary Lesson,” Jewish Review of Books, Spring 2026, describes a pro-Palestinian demonstration in 2025 at his campus where a student held a placard with Israel at the center and spokes radiating outward to other evils: imperialism, white supremacy, even reproductive injustice. “This is not garden-variety political criticism of Israel policies or conduct. It invokes a symbolic architecture in which the Jewish state becomes the universal source of global suffering — a structure with deep resonance in antisemitic thought.”

Scholars argue that it is the third major iteration of discrimination against Jews. The first was anti-Judaism, based on religion, the second was antisemitism, focused on race, and the third, anti-Zionism, is a hatred of Jewish peoplehood. 

“Anti-Zionism transforms the very meaning of Zionism,” contends Adam Louis-Klein. “The Jew is reconstructed through a new symbolic logic and a new repertoire of stereotypes.” Where antisemites invoked the pseudo-biological figure of “the Semite” to cast Jews as an Oriental race infiltrating the West, anti-Zionists invoke the authority of the social sciences to recode the Jew as the “Zionist,” a European colonizer destined to commit genocide of a non-European population. 

“Erasing Jewish indigeneity and severing Jewish belonging to the land of Israel, anti-Zionism transforms the race polluter of antisemitism into the white settler of anti-Zionism,” he asserts in his March 24, 2026 Free Press article “Yes, Anti-Zionism Is Discrimination.” 

For this reason, he writes, it’s imperative that organizations and institutions committed to protecting Jews and fighting the scourge of Jew-hatred start condemning—clearly and without apology—antisemitism and antizionism. This goes to the moral core of the matter: the right of Jews to a homeland versus the bigotry of those who deny them that right.

After the Holocaust, explicit Jew-hatred became unfashionable in polite society, but the impulse never disappeared. The workaround was simple: separate Zionism from Judaism in name, then recycle every old anti-Jewish trope and pin it on “the Zionists.”

Henry Srebrnik is a professor of political science at the University of Prince Edward Island.

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Artificial Intelligence, Sports Data, and What It Means for Community Values

Explore how artificial intelligence in sports data reflects broader societal changes, raising questions about ethics, transparency, and community values in a digital world.

Artificial intelligence is becoming an increasingly visible part of modern life, shaping how information is analyzed and decisions are made. While often discussed in fields such as healthcare, finance, and education, sports analytics provides a particularly clear example of how these systems function in real time. For many readers, the relevance of this topic goes beyond sports itself and speaks to broader questions about technology and community values.

Within Jewish communities, where education, critical thinking, and ethical responsibility have long been central principles, the rise of AI invites meaningful discussion. Understanding how automated systems operate is not only a technical issue but also a cultural and intellectual one. In global digital environments, references to platforms such as 1xbet Republic of Ireland often appear in discussions about real-time data processing, illustrating how widely these technologies are applied.

From Human Judgment to Algorithmic Thinking

Traditionally, interpreting sports performance required human observation and experience. Analysts would review statistics, assess player form, and make informed judgments based on knowledge built over time. While this method remains valuable, it is now being supplemented by artificial intelligence.

AI systems can process large volumes of data instantly, identifying patterns and trends that might otherwise go unnoticed. This shift reflects a broader movement toward algorithmic thinking—where decisions are increasingly informed by data rather than intuition alone.

For communities that place a strong emphasis on learning and inquiry, this raises important questions. How should data be interpreted? What role should human judgment continue to play? And how do we ensure that reliance on technology does not replace thoughtful analysis?

What AI Systems Analyze

Modern AI models draw on a wide range of data inputs to generate insights. In the context of sports, this includes:

  • real-time performance data
  • historical comparisons
  • individual player metrics
  • behavioural patterns
  • external conditions

The ability to integrate these variables allows AI to produce highly detailed assessments. However, it also creates a layer of complexity that is not always easy to understand.

This challenge is particularly relevant in educational settings. As younger generations become more familiar with technology, there is a growing need to teach not only how to use these systems, but also how to question and evaluate them.

Ethics, Transparency, and Responsibility

The increasing role of AI naturally leads to ethical considerations. In Jewish thought, concepts such as responsibility, fairness, and accountability are deeply rooted and widely discussed. These ideas are highly relevant when considering how automated systems are designed and used.

One of the key concerns surrounding AI is transparency. When decisions are made by complex algorithms, it can be difficult to understand the reasoning behind them. This raises questions about trust and oversight.

Ensuring that AI systems are used responsibly requires a balance between innovation and ethical awareness. Community dialogue plays an essential role in this process, helping to define how technology should align with shared values.

A Community Conversation About the Future

The use of artificial intelligence in sports analytics may seem like a narrow topic, but it reflects a much larger transformation. Across many areas of life, data-driven systems are becoming the norm, influencing how information is processed and decisions are made.

For Jewish communities, this moment presents an opportunity for reflection and engagement. By approaching technology with curiosity, critical thinking, and a strong ethical framework, it is possible to better understand both its potential and its limitations.

Ultimately, the conversation about AI is not just about technology. It is about how communities adapt, preserve their values, and shape the future in a rapidly changing world.

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