Opinion

• Opinion

  Get Used to More Davids Becoming Dianes

  You have to hand it to Rep. Barney Frank, the man knows how to empathize. In the first-ever congressional hearing on workplace discrimination against transgender people, held by the House in late June in an Education and Labor subcommittee, Frank said he understands what it means to be trapped in the wrong body — because…

  By Kathleen Peratis

  4 min read
• Opinion

  When I Was Hated Like an Arab

  It happened not so long ago, on a particularly hot Saturday afternoon in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla. Red shopping carts hugged the newly paved road. Baby strollers and soccer moms passed by. I had just parked, and was walking up to Target to use up the $50 in gift cards I had gotten for my…

  By Daniel Vahab Jul 24, 2008 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Throats in Trouble

  Tobacco is back in the news again, with the $375 million pledge by billionaires Bill Gates and Michael Bloomberg to help curb smoking. In my lifetime — I am now 96 — the story of tobacco has undergone a profound change. At one time, the smoke-filled room was an ever-present mark of social and political…

  By Gus Tyler Jul 24, 2008 | < 1 min read

Columnists View All

• Jay Michaelson What can really be done to prevent antisemitic attacks like Bondi Beach?

  

• Rob Eshman Australia shooting terrifies Jews worldwide — and strengthens the case for Israel

  

• Nora Berman Did crypto-Jews invent the modern tarot deck?

  

• Dan Perry It’s a classic trick of liars and crooks — and it’s shaping Israel’s response to war and disaster

  

• Emily Tamkin The Holocaust survivor writer who can help us through this ominous era

  

The Latest

• Opinion

  Endow This Column Today, for Only a Pittance

  At Brandeis University, the standard advice given to visitors is that they must not stop as they walk about the campus — for in less than a minute, a plaque is attached to any immobile object. Nor is Brandeis unique in its offer of “naming opportunities.” Atop one synagogue in Newton, Mass., there is an…

  By Leonard Fein Jul 24, 2008 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  The Games Begin

  When the Olympic torch is formally lit August 8 in the Bird’s Nest, China’s odd-looking new Olympic stadium, and the sky above Beijing explodes with what officials promise will be a “spectacular” fireworks display (in the very “birthplace of gunpowder,” as a government press release artlessly points out), a few key figures will be conspicuously…

  Jul 24, 2008 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Now This Here, Mr. Obama, Is…

  By the time Barack Obama wraps up this week’s whirlwind tour of Israel, he will undoubtedly have heard all sorts of wise things from all sorts of wise men (and women). As is well known, we have no shortage of them here. But try as he may, the presumptive Democratic nominee for president of the…

  By Uri Dromi Jul 17, 2008 | 3 min read
• 
  Opinion

  The Choices My Father Made

  A couple weeks ago, my father passed away. As I prepared to speak at his funeral in Vienna, I wondered whether the life story of this very private man carried any larger message that would be of interest beyond his immediate family and friends. I soon realized that it did. My father left Europe after…

  By Eric Frey Jul 17, 2008 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Olmert’s Corruption, In a Word

  A number of emotions vie for top billing in the wake of the tragic exchange that took place this week between Israel and Hezbollah. Sadness and sympathy for the Goldwasser and Regev families, of course; shock and disbelief at the inhumane callousness of Hezbollah, naturally; but outrage and disgust for the Israeli government should be…

  By Buzzy Gordon Jul 17, 2008 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  The Value of Settlement Is Obsolete

  It was one of the most important and largely forgotten milestones in the history of the state: 41 years ago, on July 16, 1967, a young kibbutznik got out of his jeep at Aalleiqa, an abandoned Syrian army base on the Golan Heights, and became the first settler in the occupied territories. Only five weeks…

  By Gershom Gorenberg Jul 17, 2008 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Speaking for God

  Right now, in scholarly circles, there is a search for the true author of what has come to be known as the “Serenity Prayer.” The prayer reads, “God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference.” The authorship has…

  By Gus Tyler Jul 17, 2008 | < 1 min read
• Opinion

  A Drum Major for Righteous Indignation

  The occasion: The Senate vote on a bill to bar a 10.6% cut in payments to physicians who treat Medicare patients. Just before the July recess, the bill drew 59 “yea” votes — one shy of what was needed to cut off debate, eight shy of what would be needed to override the president’s promised…

  By Leonard Fein Jul 17, 2008 | 4 min read