Rabbi Jay Michaelson is a contributing columnist for the Forward and for Rolling Stone. He is the author of 10 books, and won the 2023 New York Society for Professional Journalists award for opinion writing.
Jay MichaelsonContributing Columnist
By Jay Michaelson
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Film & TV The Heretical Gnosticism Of Darren Aronofsky’s Most Daring Film
I chose to see Darren Aronofsky’s latest film, “mother!” without reading anything about it. All I could infer from its posters was that it would be scary, and all I could tell from Facebook was that my friends had strong opinions about it. Little did I know that I’d be watching two hours of mystical…
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Opinion 4 Reasons Republican Jews Are Still In Denial About Trump
In a milquetoast statement released on August 16, the Republican Jewish Coalition at last revealed itself to be living in complete delusion. The statement was released after Donald Trump first blamed “many sides” for the violence in Charlottesville, and then issued an aide-written statement condemning racism, only to double down on his original position, stating…
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Opinion Shame On You, Jewish Voice For Peace, For Targeting Pro-Israel Gays
I’m going “on record” condemning Jewish Voice for Peace’s tactics at the Israel Day Parade. Protesting the parade, even from inside, is something I totally respect. And I have never marched in the parade myself, since I consider it to be overly nationalistic and jingoistic, as well as needlessly confrontational. However, JVP also endangered the…
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Opinion Dead Wrong: Roger Ailes’s Destructive Legacy
Here’s how he might have covered it: Roger Ailes, whose scandal-ridden career ended in disgrace when years of sexual harassment allegations finally caught up with him, died this week — some say of shame, others of the morbid obesity that plagued him throughout his life. Of course, that would be both unfair and vulgar. Ailes…
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Opinion Armed And Dangerous: After Firing James Comey, Trump Will Weaponize The FBI
It’s clear what Donald Trump got rid of in his “midnight massacre” firing of FBI Director James Comey: an investigation into his ties to Russia that is somewhere between pesky and a prelude to impeachment. Less well observed is what he gained: the weaponization of the FBI, soon to be headed by a Trump loyalist,…
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Opinion Trump’s ‘Religious Liberty’ Executive Order Should Scare The Bejesus Out Of Jews
Be careful what you wish for. For years, the Christian Right, abetted by some Orthodox Jewish allies, has claimed that there’s a war on religion in America. Sometimes it’s the “War on Christmas,” sometimes it’s alleged persecution of Christians for practicing their faith, and sometimes it’s hard to articulate at all. Well, today, the president…
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Opinion Sean Spicer Is Dangerous — Whether He’s Malevolent Or Incompentent
Jews emerged from the Passover holiday to learn that Sean Spicer, the malaprop-spouting, reporter-bashing White House press secretary, had managed to outdo himself with a barrage of Holocaust ignorance (to put it charitably). Should we care? Yes. Though Spicer has apologized, and some of his apologists have insisted it was simply a “gaffe,” in fact…
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Opinion Brian Williams’ Other Leonard Cohen Temptations
“We see these beautiful pictures at night from the decks of these two U.S. Navy vessels in the eastern Mediterranean,” Brian Williams said. “I am tempted to quote the great Leonard Cohen: ‘I am guided by the beauty of our weapons.’” “We see the arc of my career these days,” Williams said. “I am tempted…
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