Welcome to the Forward’s coverage of the robust lives of American Jews. Here there’s a little of everything about the multifaceted world of Jewish life. There are light-hearted Jewish celebrity stories and shocking Jewish celebrity news. Food is also plentiful,…
Life
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At Commentary, Change Comes to Those … Who Proudly Resist It
Commentary magazine was established in 1945 and, before Monday, only changed its design three times, so the launch of this fourth iteration of the venerable conservative magazine with deep Jewish roots had a certain celebratory air to it. Extreme makeover, it was not. But even though the sit-down luncheon in a paneled room at the…
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Young Jewish Woman Wins Rohr Prize
In the three years since it was founded, the Sami Rohr Prize — the winner of which will be announced this week — has become one of the most prestigious awards for Jewish writing. Given out, in alternating years, for works of fiction and non-fiction, the Prize is also the most lucrative of its genre…
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Offbeat Israel: Japan’s Falafel Connoisseurs
They say that all Israelis reckon they are experts on falafel – where the country’s finest can be found, in what order the pita should be stuffed, which salads deserve to be included. Well that was before sushi arrived. Now that virtually every shopping street in the country has a bar serving up the Japanese…
The Latest
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What Would Pope Benedict Watch?
Israel’s ultra-Orthodox Jews may have beef with El Al, but Pope Benedict XVI apparently doesn’t. As the Forward is reporting, the Rabbinical Transportation Committee — an organization tasked with representing the mass transit interests of Israel’s Haredi community — is urging traditionally observant Jews to shun El Al — citing the national air carrier “immodest”…
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A JDate Love Triangle
Dear Mr. Zaslow: About two months ago, I sent a message to a woman on JDate whom I was very interested in. I didn’t hear back from her, and in the meantime I began dating an ex-girlfriend again. Recently, the woman from JDate e-mailed me, expressing interest and apologizing. She explained that she could not…
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To Iran, With Love — And Geopolitical Challenges
To commemorate the festival of Nowruz — marking the beginning of the Persian New Year — American President Obama and Israeli President Shimon Peres have each recorded friendly messages, embedded with challenges, for the people of Iran. Obama, in his statement, also available with Farsi subtitles, said: The United States wants the Islamic Republic of…
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Just Be Glad Your Last Name Is Not Madoff
New York’s other B. Madoff — Ben, not Bernie; pronounced MAD-off, not MADE-off — has been a target of some of the rage directed at the admitted Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff. Listed in the Manhattan phonebook, Ben Madoff, no relation to Bernie, has received dozens of angry calls — several of them anti-Semitic in nature…
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Israel Grants ‘Maternity Leave’ for Gay Father, Even as Homophobia Abounds
New research indicates that homophobia is rife in Israel. Responding to a survey conducted by the school of psychology at the Center for Academic Studies in Or Yehuda, one-third of people said they are “disgusted” by sex between men. Only 6% of respondents said the same about sex between women. Some 19% of parents said…
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Monotheism, Hollywood, Bagels … and the Tushy
What have the Jews ever given us? OK not a banking system that is the envy of the world. OK, not an education system to rival the finest of any culture. But a movie industry that drives world fashions. And superheroes … monotheism … bagels … cutting-edge comedy from the Catskills to Sacha Baron Cohen….
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Confusing Queen Esther and … the Starbucks Mermaid
Traditionally, Purim celebrants drink enough alcohol to confuse the Book of Esther’s villain, Haman, with its hero, Mordechai. But this year, two unlikely female characters were confused: Queen Esther and the mermaid depicted in the Starbucks Coffee logo. “The girl in the Starbucks logo is Queen Esther … the queen of the Jews,” Safwat Higazi,…
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Mrs. Hugh Jackman Madoff?
As the government talks about seizing her assets, did Ruth Madoff throw caution to the wind — and go on a shopping spree in New York City? The short answer is no, but the paparazzi mistook Hugh Jackman’s wife, the actress Deborra-Lee Furness, for 67-year-old Ruth Madoff on the streets of New York City yesterday….
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Yiddish אַ שאָקירנדיקע פּורים־איבערלעבונג (פֿון די זכרונות פֿון י. י. זינגער)A shocking Purim experience (from the memoirs of I. J. Singer)
די סצענע פֿון זינגערס קינדעריאָרן האָט ער געשילדערט אין זײַן בוך „פֿון אַ וועלט וואָס איז נישטאָ מער‟.
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Fast Forward Jesse Jackson, whose ties to American Jews were marked by strain and solidarity, dies at 84
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Opinion Tragically, ‘genocide’ has become a meaningless word
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Fast Forward Mamdani appoints progressive Israel critic to oversee NYC’s global diplomacy
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