In the Forward’s opinion section, you’ll find analysis and essays from diverse corners of the Jewish world.
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Opinion
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Opinion
Breaking the Code of Ritual Observance
In a widely reproduced 1994 article, novelist and semiotician Umberto Eco famously argued that “Macintosh is Catholic and that DOS is Protestant.” In that spirit, and with apologies to the maestro, imagine for a moment the technological backbone of Jewish communal worship. The vast majority of it looks remarkably consistent, but around the edges there…
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Opinion No Alternative Destiny Less Complicated
In the aftermath of last week’s surprisingly upbeat Annapolis meeting, all the talk’s about a two-state solution. The unwary may suppose that as soon as the domestic problems within Israel and among the Palestinians are resolved, the movement toward such a solution will be quite rapid. After all, we’ve been repeatedly told that the essential…
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Opinion Note to Our Readers
The Forward newspaper and its editor in chief, J.J. Goldberg, announced this week that Goldberg is scaling back his editorial duties and assuming the newly created position of editorial director. Goldberg will continue to write the Forward’s editorials and oversee its overall editorial content, while other staff members will assume many of the management and…
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Opinion Why Annapolis Worked
In the end, the Annapolis peace conference proved to be far less than the cataclysmic, watershed event that its sharpest critics had predicted. It unfolded, to everyone’s surprise, with very little upheaval. And for that reason, it might yet turn out to be far more than the pointless flop anticipated by the world-weary wise men….
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Opinion Screaming Silence
No discussion of Annapolis can be complete without considering the roles of the minor players inside and outside the assembly hall. These are the folks commonly spoken of as the supporting cast. A better term this time might be unsupporting cast. One of the most important roles was reserved for the foreign ministers of Arab…
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Letters November 30, 2007
Israel Faces Difficult Decision on Refugees The dramatic headline and conclusion to a November 16 article ignores the very positive ongoing dialogue between Israel and American Jewish organizations (“Israel Turns Down Help on Darfur Refugees”). The article correctly notes that the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society and a number of American Jewish organizations have offered their…
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Opinion Grasp the Promise of Annapolis
Even the most hardened of Middle East cynics could be excused for momentarily feeling a fluttering of hope after witnessing the scenes at this week’s peace conference in Annapolis, Md. Israel’s much-maligned prime minister, Ehud Olmert, conducted himself with consumate dignity, displaying a rare capacity to combine unabashed national pride with sincere empathy for the…
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Opinion An Unsightly Challenge to Israeli Sovereignty
Generally speaking, once a week is plenty. But now and then the pace of things quickens, and I find myself wishing this newspaper were published three times a week, there being more than enough happening to warrant not one but three columns. This is one such week. What follows, therefore, is three scrunched up columns….
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Opinion Securing the Future of the Center for Jewish History: NYU Has Resources for Growth
During the last half of the 20th century, the center of Judaic scholarship and teaching in the United States moved from Jewish institutions, rabbinical seminaries, Hebrew teachers’ colleges and the independent Dropsie graduate school to secular colleges and universities. This shift took place for a number of reasons, among them the ability to raise money,…
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Opinion Securing the Future of the Center for Jewish History: Independence Is Invaluable
In late September, New York University circulated a confidential proposal to members of the boards of the Center for Jewish History. Euphemistically titled “Securing the Growth of the Center for Jewish History,” the proposal in fact spells out the end of the center as it now exists while securing the growth of NYU. The Center…
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Letters November 23, 2007
Protect Pakistan’s Nukes Three cheers for a November 16 editorial on Pakistan (“The Bomb and the Taliban”). The most compelling idea that should inform our policy toward Pakistan is the urgent need to keep that country’s nuclear arsenal out of the hands of the Islamist extremists. That requires some stability, which rests, inter alia, on…
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