Leonard Fein
By Leonard Fein
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Opinion Memories of Ben Gurion
Yitzhak Shamir, former Prime Minister, unrepentant terrorist, fervent nationalist, is gone. Ironically, he may best be remembered as the person who caved before the pressure of President George H. W. Bush and Secretary of State James Baker and, however reluctantly, participated in an ice-breaking peace conference in Madrid in 1991. Madrid was the first time…
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Opinion Israel Confronts Strangers In Its Midst
What shall be done about the large number of non-citizens that dwell in Israel? This question is no longer merely vexing, it is urgent, inflammatory, sometimes violent, often vulgar. The ger has a long and detailed history in Jewish texts and thought. Its conventional translation is “stranger,” but you don’t have to search hard to…
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Opinion Exploiting Jewish Fear on Iran
Rabbi Nachman of Bratslav famously said that the main thing is never to be at all afraid. The revered rabbi was wrong. It is madness never to be afraid at all. We need to know whether to hide from the wolves, to slay them, or in some other way defend against them. That said, it…
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Opinion Where Is Class Consciousness?
An absolute precondition for class warfare is class consciousness. And one of the great mysteries of American history is that with just a few transient exceptions, there has been near zero class consciousness here. Or, more precisely: The very rich have been well aware of their class privilege and have labored mightily to protect and…
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Opinion Separate Synagogue and State
They didn’t exactly turn handsprings, but their cheering was unmistakable. “This is a historic day for Israelis and Jews around the world,” proclaimed Rabbi Julie Schonfeld, executive vice president of the Conservative Rabbinical Assembly. The head of Israel’s Reform movement, Rabbi Gilad Kariv, declared that the decision is “an important breakthrough in the effort to…
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Opinion Isn’t Israel Already a ‘Jewish State’?
A leading Palestinian negotiator says that for the Palestinians to recognize Israel as a Jewish state would “adversely impact the rights of Palestinian citizens of Israel.” Not at all, say Yosef Kuperwasser, director general of Israel’s ministry of strategic affairs and Shalom Lipner, special coordinator for public diplomacy in the Prime Minister’s Office. This, they…
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Opinion Death of Tamara Brooks, 70, Robs Theodore Bikel of Treasured Companion
Sunrise, sunset. On May 2, Turner Classic Movies celebrated Theodore (Theo) Bikel’s 88th birthday by airing six of his films – by and large, as it happens, not the most memorable among them. Not counting television roles, Bikel – or Theo, since I write as his friend – has appeared in more than 40 films,…
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Opinion Stopping Them From ‘Tuning Out Israel’
Just about wherever I go these days, or so it seems, I encounter 20-somethings who have tuned out of Israel. I know that there’s a difference between anecdotes and evidence, but when a series of uninvited anecdotes all point in the same direction — well, that’s a lot of smoke, and it makes sense to…
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