Opinion

• Letters

  March 27, 2009

  Yeshiva Is Incubator For Orthodox Activism Reading your March 6 news article “Social Activism, Modern Orthodox-Style,” I was struck by consultant Shifra Bronznick’s assessment of three major factors that have caused the increased interest in young Orthodox engagement in social justice: Darfur, the Agriprocessors scandal and the plethora of nondenominational Jewish social justice organizations. It…

  2 min read
• Opinion

  On Israel, a Fork in the Road

  Benjamin Netanyahu’s imminent return to the prime minister’s office is likely to force a long-overdue discussion in the American Jewish community over what it really means to be “pro-Israel.” For decades, the organized Jewish community has successfully fostered solid support for Israel in the United States. As a result, American politicians vie for the pro-Israel…

  By Jeremy Ben-Ami Mar 18, 2009 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Avigdor Lieberman’s Bright Idea

  Avigdor Lieberman’s electoral success has been a cause of alarm in Israel and abroad. Lieberman’s critics are justifiably concerned by his often inflammatory rhetoric, as well as his demand that the right to vote be made contingent upon citizens taking a loyalty oath — a policy totally unacceptable in a democratic society. One of Lieberman’s…

  By Sergio DellaPergola Mar 18, 2009 | 3 min read

Columnists View All

• Jodi Rudoren This is my last column as editor of the Forward

  

• Jay Michaelson American Jews were played — now what?

  

• Rob Eshman Charlie Kirk and Alan Berg: 2 murders, 41 years apart, show the painful perils of polarization

  

• Nora Berman Is Netflix’s new show the most Jewish cartoon ever?

  

• Dan Perry Israel’s strike in Qatar: An audacious bid for victory, or just another foolhardy provocation?

  

• Emily Tamkin Trump’s attack on George Soros is ludicrous. It also endangers Jews (and everyone else)

  

The Latest

• Opinion

  With Friends and Foes Like Freeman’s…

  The blogosphere: When it’s good, it is very good; when it’s bad, which is often, it is quite horrid, a culture of grudge, a place for malcontents to broadcast their resentments and fleetingly fantasize potency. That is why what follows is not about the blogosphere. It is, rather, about the difficulty of conducting a reasonably…

  By Leonard Fein Mar 18, 2009 | 4 min read
• 
  Opinion

  From Russia With Lessons in Transnational Jewish Identity-Building

  What do pork stores in Israel, mass Jewish immigration to Germany and Las Vegas-style shows in Yiddish on the grounds of the Kremlin have in common? All reflect the complex reality of post-Soviet Russian Jewry that has long puzzled much of the rest of the Jewish world. It has been nearly 20 years since the…

  By Olga Gershenson and David Shneer Mar 11, 2009 | 5 min read
• Opinion

  Putting Politics Above Healing

  I was heartbroken to learn of the recent decision by the Palestinian Authority to cease allowing Palestinians to be treated at Israeli hospitals, including Hadassah’s two hospitals in Jerusalem. From the day we began bringing Western medical care to the Middle East in 1913 until today, Hadassah’s policy has been to provide medical care for…

  By Nancy Falchuk Mar 11, 2009 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  What Makes This Column Jewish?

  A persistent commenter on the Forward’s Web site dependably complains whenever I write a column that does not deal explicitly with matters Jewish. As he puts it, “Being a Jew in America and viewing events from the point of view of a Jewish identity is a Jewish experience. Being an American in America and viewing…

  By Leonard Fein Mar 11, 2009 | 3 min read
• Letters

  March 20, 2009

  Nothing Selfish About Rabbi’s Cancer Plea Your article singling out Rabbi Michael Lerner for a letter he sent regarding his cancer was baffling (“Tikkun’s Founder: ‘I Have Cancer,’ Give to My Cause,” March 13). Why would you consider it newsworthy to try to put down a devout and caring rabbi for writing a letter to…

  Mar 11, 2009 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Protect the Children

  New York State Assemblywoman Marge Markey’s introduction to what has become a cause in her legislative life occurred a few years ago, when someone arrived at her home to ask for assistance from her and her husband, a judge. The person said he was sexually abused as a child, and Markey discovered that the more…

  Mar 11, 2009 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Saving Tibet

  When the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum opened to the public 26 years ago, the very first visitor was the Dalai Lama of Tibet. The Buddhist leader prayed for the millions killed in the Holocaust and decried the “evil” that led to their destruction. That first visit to the Holocaust Memorial Museum was not the…

  Mar 11, 2009 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Why We Give

  President Obama’s plan to limit the tax deductions for charitable contributions by wealthy Americans is a clumsy way to reach a laudable goal. Clumsy, because it adds a new level of complexity and unfairness to a tax system that is already far too complex and inequitable. It will undoubtedly lead to some reduction in charitable…

  Mar 4, 2009 | 2 min read