Opinion

• Opinion

  When Good News Is Bad News

  Across the country, the value of homes has been on the rise. That’s the good news. As the worth of homes rises in value, so, too, do taxes. That’s the bad news. How does this all work out? Let’s consider today’s most dramatic case — namely California, the most populous state in the union. The…

  By Gus Tyler

  2 min read
• Opinion

  Words Won’t Save Sudan

  Donald Rumsfeld, our misguided defense secretary, told the Council on Foreign Relations the other day that the United States is deficient in its public relations. He proposed a number of remedies, such as the rapid deployment of “the best military communications capabilities to new theaters of operation” and the development and execution of “multifaceted media…

  By Leonard Fein Feb 24, 2006 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  Speaking Out on Iraq

  History almost certainly will judge President Bush by the ultimate success or failure of his decision to invade Iraq. But American Jews already have decided: About 70%, according to a recent poll, think the war was a mistake. Jewish organizations — the entities that wield political power in the community’s name — are another matter….

  Feb 24, 2006 | 2 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 I have the answer to Jon Stewart’s toughest question about Israel

  

• Nora Berman ‘Eddington’ is full of conspiracy theories but it’s not about Jews. Or is it?

  

• Dan Perry Recognizing a Palestinian state is a great way to doom Palestinians

  

• Emily Tamkin Is starvation in Gaza really Israel’s fault? The facts are clear

  

The Latest

• Opinion

  Drawing the Line on Iran

  A spate of recent controversies has shined a spotlight on European efforts to strike a balance between protecting freedom of speech and preventing a revival of the ultranationalist extremism that triggered World War II. In each case — the Muslim riots over the publication of cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad, the sentencing of Holocaust denier…

  Feb 24, 2006 | < 1 min read
• Opinion

  Why the GOP Can’t Convert the Jewish Vote

  American Jews should not be surprised by the political divorce between televangelist Pat Robertson and his supporters in Israel. Even as President Bush courted the Jewish vote in 2004, Jews remained loyal to the Democratic Party, to a large degree out of fear of the religious right. Robertson recently said on his television program, “The…

  By Eric Uslaner and Mark Lichbach Feb 24, 2006 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  For Gay Palestinians, Tel Aviv Is Mecca

  Al-Fatiha — which calls itself the principal international organization promoting the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Arabs — is located not in Beirut or Cairo, but in Washington, D.C. And no wonder: The international movement for the rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people hardly exists inside the Muslim world. Arab human…

  By Kathleen Peratis Feb 24, 2006 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  A Wandering People, Redefining Final Resting Place

  Jews are, as the epithet goes, a wandering people, and today we are among the most mobile Americans. Modern technology may have made it much easier to stay in touch across great distances, but our far-flung experience still poses challenges — challenges that have, quite literally, grave consequences. Take, for example, Michael, a 50-something professor…

  By Bethamie Horowitz Feb 24, 2006 | 4 min read
• Letters

  Letter February 24, 2006

  Boxing Champ Herman Donchin Stood Proud Like Barney Ross, my late father, Herman “Curley” Donchin, was a Jewish boxer and later a wrestler (“Elegy for a Fighter,” January 27). In 1927 he won a Golden Gloves medal from the New York Daily News. My father later went into professional wrestling, engaging in bouts all over…

  Feb 24, 2006 | 5 min read
• Opinion

  Comparative Disadvantage

  In German, the word Volkswagen means “people’s wagon.” For many years, it was exactly that. It was a car aimed at serving popular needs, produced by a company that worked very closely with German autoworkers’ unions. However, despite its historic concern for consumers and workers, Volkswagen this month announced plans to cut some 20,000 jobs…

  By Gus Tyler Feb 17, 2006 | 2 min read
• Letters

  February 17, 2006

  Let No Topic Be Sacred Opinion writer Tariq Ramadan’s call for calm among Muslims is much needed and appreciated (“A Muslim Call From Europe For Faith in Civility,” February 10). However, in dismissing the notion of a clash between the values of the Enlightenment and those of religious zealotry, he ignores the fact that the…

  Feb 17, 2006 | 5 min read
• Opinion

  Held in Contempt

  Excuse me: You support our troops, don’t you? Of course you do. We all do, whether or not we go the bumper sticker route. Those of us who want them home before nightfall support them not less than those of us who want them to have better body armor; those of us who supported the…

  By Leonard Fein Feb 17, 2006 | 4 min read