For the legions of commentators and bloggers who try to discern the Middle Eastern bias of the New York Times, this week offered two contradictory pieces of evidence. On the Gray Lady’s front page April 5, there was a story describing the plight of the residents of Sderot, the Israel town under fire from Gaza….
Jerusalem — More than a thousand leading politicians, scholars and scientists from around the world are set to convene in Jerusalem next month with the lofty goal of outlining a blueprint for the future of Israel and the Jewish people. The global leaders will gather in the Jewish state May 13 for “Facing Tomorrow,” a…
When Philadelphia-based Rabbi Leonard Gordon wanted to learn more about presidential contender Barack Obama in advance of Pennsylvania’s upcoming primary, he didn’t have to read a newspaper, turn on the television — or even leave his living room. Instead, Gordon invited over two colleagues and chatted with Rep. Jan Schakowsky, a major backer of the…
Jeremy Dauber, a 35-year-old scholar and expert in the birth of Yiddish literature and Modern Hebrew during the Jewish Enlightenment, has secured the much-coveted tenured professorship in Yiddish at Columbia University. With the appointment, Dauber — who already held the prestigious Atran chair in Yiddish Language, Literature, and Culture at the university — becomes one…
The Cold War may be over, but its cloak-and-dagger intrigues are alive and kicking in the former Soviet Union. On March 12, Emanuel Zeltser, a self-styled expert on white-collar crime who immigrated to the United States from the Soviet Union in the 1970s and has been a counsel to a series of controversial Soviet-born moguls,…
While Jewish backers of Hillary Clinton continue to advance the notion that Barack Obama’s support for Israel is untested, a new poll released by a pro-Israel group shows that the Illinois senator’s supporters could be marginally friendlier than Clinton’s to the Jewish state. Sixty-two percent of voters favoring Obama said they support Israel, versus 58%…
Tel Aviv – After years of grumbling about those Israelis who avoid military service — particularly Haredi or ultra-Orthodox Jews who refuse to serve on religious grounds — and leave the burden to others, Israelis have recently begun focusing anxiously on the growing numbers of youngsters who simply don’t want to serve. The topic became…
Washington – A groundbreaking resolution adopted April 1 by the House of Representatives will require the administration to bring up the plight of Jewish refugees from Arab countries when the matter of Palestinian refugees is raised in any international forum discussing the issue. The resolution received bipartisan support and was backed by all major Jewish…
Washington – Although the organizers behind a nascent dovish pro-Israel group known as the J Street Project have steadfastly remained silent ahead of an expected formal launch in mid-April, details have emerged over the past week that paint a clear picture of the group’s goals. In a mission statement distributed among supporters last month, the…
Washington, D.C. – After more than three decades of playing the baseball equivalent of neglected stepchildren, Washingtonians finally have a state-of-the-art ball field to call their own. Nationals Park was inaugurated this past Sunday night with all the fanfare befitting a team headquartered in the nation’s capital. Opera diva Denyce Graves belted out the national…
Rabbi Herbert A. Friedman, a dominant figure in American Jewish philanthropy during Israel’s formative years, died March 31 at his New York home. He was 89, and succumbed after a prolonged period of illness, according to his wife, Francine. Friedman served for nearly two decades, from 1954 to 1971, as the chief executive officer of…
