Opinion

• Opinion

  The Pope Rethinks the Afterlife

  For most of us, I suppose, the word “limbo” calls to mind a certain dance craze associated with Chubby Checker, whose major hit, “(C’mon, Baby, Let’s Do) The Twist,” was probably covered by every bar mitzvah band that ventured beyond “The Hokey Pokey” and “Hava Nagila” between 1961 and 1965. Limbo remained in that private…

  By Martin Jaffee

  4 min read
• Opinion

  Refocus Federations’ Agenda on Renaissance and Renewal

  There is no question that United Jewish Communities has the ability to be nimble. The national body of local Jewish federations raised hundreds of millions of dollars in aid when war broke out last summer between Israel and Hezbollah, and in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina it ably directed communal resources to meet crucial needs….

  By David Eliezrie May 18, 2007 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Immobilized by Moral Ambiguity

  Will it never end? The “it” refers to the cruelty, the meanness, the violence that so have characterized our times, and do still. While Iraq and Afghanistan continue to leech — blood, treasure, honor — it is other things I have in mind just now. The haunting question is the disturbing theme of a movie…

  By Leonard Fein May 18, 2007 | 4 min read

Columnists View All

• Alyssa Katz My summer plans prove it: The Jewish Catskills are alive and kicking

  

• Rob Eshman ‘Remember the Liberty’ has become code for ‘Israel Is Evil’ 

  

• Dan Perry The Iran war ended terribly for the US, and even worse for Israel

  

• Emily Tamkin Outrage over Nicholas Kristof’s op-ed on sexual assault of Palestinians is missing the point

  

• Jay Michaelson You’re wrong, Ken Paxton: Obviously God is nonbinary

  

The Latest

• Opinion

  Coping With Illegal Immigration

  There are some 12 million illegal immigrants in the U.S. A bipartisan effort by the White House and key U.S. Senators has been working on a plan to cope with this circumstance. Their plan is simple. Instead of basing policy on reuniting families, the proposed new emphasis will be on providing a skilled and needed…

  By Gus Tyler May 18, 2007 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  A New Breed of Trade Pacts

  The Republican White House and the Democratic Congress have reached an agreement on a new kind of trade pact. It applies to pending agreements with Columbia, Peru, Panama and South Korea. What is distinctive about these trade agreements is that they go beyond the simple exchange of goods. They oblige the parties to observe certain…

  By Gus Tyler May 17, 2007 | < 1 min read
• Opinion

  An Incredible Conflict of Interest

  Michael E. Baroody has been a senior lobbyist for the National Association of Manufacturers. He has been named by President Bush to head the Consumer Product Safety Commission. The NAM is delighted — as might be expected. What was not expected was a gift of $150,000 from the NAM to Baroody. Such a gift is…

  By Gus Tyler May 16, 2007 | < 1 min read
• Opinion

  Congress Digging Into Corporate Executive Pay

  The overblown compensation of corporate executives has been a matter of major concern to the American democracy as far back as “the Gilded Age” as America entered the 20th century. What could be done to contain this runaway self-indulgence of the mighty moguls? The corporations found a way. They hired experts in the field of…

  By Gus Tyler May 13, 2007 | < 1 min read
• Letters

  May 11, 2007

  Ex-Chief Rabbi’s Words Are Essentially Sorcery Rabbi David Ellenson opines about Orthodox rabbis in Israel who are saying that Reform Judaism is the cause of the Holocaust and who refuse to give legitimacy to the Reform rabbinate (“Obscene Orthodox Hatred Demands a Clear Denunciation,” May 4). This pains Ellenson — as it should — since…

  May 11, 2007 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  Meltdown

  The very public meltdown of the World Jewish Congress is a tragedy of historic proportions, masquerading as low farce. An organization that once embodied the Jewish people’s epic struggle against the greatest of world evils, the WJC has now been reduced to a mockery, an ugly sideshow of nasty personal feuds, name-calling and bookkeeping scandals….

  May 11, 2007 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  Will Scandal Loom Large in ’08 Elections?

  Last month, the FBI raided the offices of Rep. Rick Renzi’s family business as part of an ongoing Justice Department investigation into a land-swap deal that could benefit one of the Arizona Republican’s friends. Just days before that raid, the FBI searched the home of Rep. John Doolittle, apparently looking for records of a company…

  By Stuart Rothenberg May 11, 2007 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  Misusing Judaism in the Service of Roe

  ‘Oh, come on!” the e-mail read. “What’s a few dead children on the altar of my liberal slippery-slope paranoia?” Gruesome as the imagery was, I had to smile. The message was intended as a humorous ‘Touché” from an academic who had originally contacted me in anger. He was not only honest enough to concede his…

  May 11, 2007 | 4 min read