When a series of terrorist attacks killed eight Israelis around the southern Israeli city of Eilat, Gershon Baskin knew immediately that the deaths had the potential to escalate into a full-blown conflict between Israel and Hamas, the Islamist group that rules Gaza. And he saw himself as one of the few individuals who could do…
For as long as there have been authors, there have been secret identities — pseudonyms — used by writers to unlock creativity, hide identity, or simply to become someone else. Carmela Ciuraru became interested in the literary pseudonym and recently published a book on the topic, “Nom de Plume.” In it, she profiles famous and…
She warned them. She told those assembled at the Jewish community center, men and women aged 60-plus, that hers would be an X-rated lecture on sex education. Even so, two women stalked out, offended, when Dianne Matthew got to the part about oral sex. “I use blatant language,” Matthew, a licensed clinical social worker affiliated…
When a rare 5.9-magnitude earthquake rocked the East Coast this week, it reminded many of the old Richter scale, which was until recently the main way temblors were measured. Although Charles Richter is credited for inventing the scale, few know the crucial role that Beno Gutenberg, a famed Jewish seismologist, played in helping to create…
Since mid-July, hundreds of thousands of Israelis have demonstrated for “social justice” in what have been called the nation’s largest protests on domestic issues in recent memory, and organizers promise more. Yet the leaders of most major American Jewish organizations have been noticeably silent about these protests — with one exception. And that organization, the…
The two-week-long, 45,000-employee strike at Verizon Communications has thrust Larry Cohen, president of the Communications Workers of America, into the national spotlight. At a time when big strikes are increasingly rare, the Verizon walkout grabbed plenty of attention and ended uncertainly on Aug. 23, as employees returned to work under the terms of an old…
Thursday November 3rd, 7pm Jewish Art for the New Millennium Living Theater @ 21 Clinton Street, New York City Frank London, Judith Malina and Jerome Rothenberg Curated by Jake Marmer Series designed by Dan Friedman The Jewish Daily Forward presents the fourth installment in a new series of innovative arts programming. “Jewish Art for the…
This week, host Josh Nathan-Kazis is joined by Forward opinion editor Gal Beckerman and staff writer Nathan Guttman to discuss how the New Israel Fund has been trying to support the Israeli tent protests and the protestors’ lukewarm response. Then the group considers a recent editorial written by the Rev. Al Sharpton about his role…
As Neal Pollack tells it, the idea for his new book came to him while chatting “in the shvitz.” More often he uses himself for inspiration. In his 2000 debut novel, “The Neal Pollack Anthology of American Literature” (Harper Perennial, 2002), Pollack portrayed himself as a parody of the self-aggrandizing authors of previous generations, the…
The terrorist attack launched from Egyptian Sinai, just north of Eilat, on August 18, brought Israel into a headlong collision with the problematic fruits of the Egyptian revolution. In Sinai, 12 militants were able to spend several days reconnoitering Israeli civilian targets along the loosely patrolled Egypt-Israel border, then launch incursions into Israel from alongside…
The exchange of art between America and Russia is in a deep freeze because of a legal battle between the Chabad-Lubavitch sect and the Russian government over the Schneerson Collection — almost 40,000 books and manuscripts that Moscow has and Chabad wants. After failing to secure the collection through the Russian courts, Chabad sued in…
