Opinion

• Opinion

  Why JNF’s Split from KKL Is Actually Good for Everyone

  The relationship between the Jewish National Fund (JNF) and Keren Kayemeth L’yisrael (KKL) was the topic of a recent “expose” in these pages. It seems that direct support by JNF for KKL’s activities in Israel has hit an all-time low of 1%. The article implied that this represents some sort of aberration or departure from…

  By Alon Tal

  5 min read
• 
  Opinion

  No, the Anti-BDS Bill Doesn’t Threaten Free Speech. But What It Does Might Be Worse

  There’s an ugly fight going on in Congress over a bill that’s meant to protect Israel from economic boycotts. The bill makes it a federal crime to call for boycotting the Jewish state. Despite initial bipartisan sponsorship, the bill is running into serious opposition — a rarity for a pro-Israel congressional measure — over charges…

  By J.J. Goldberg Aug 4, 2017 | 6 min read
• 
  Opinion

  The Temple Mount Crisis Seems to Be Over. What Have We Learned?

  Three weeks after the murder of two Israeli policemen on the Temple Mount esplanade by three Israeli Arab Islamists, the crisis appears to be over. There is still a standoff in Israel’s relations with Jordan—a derivative of the Temple Mount incident that involved the shooting by an Israeli security guard of two Jordanians. Then too,…

  By Yossi Alpher Aug 3, 2017 | 4 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 The 3 responses to the Bondi Beach Hanukkah attack that could make Jews safer

  

• Emily Tamkin The fundamental miscalculation behind the GOP’s antisemitism crisis

  

The Latest

• 
  Opinion

  19 People Jews Should Worry About More Than Linda Sarsour

  You may be familiar with Linda Sarsour, an activist who rose to prominence as one of the leaders of the Women’s March. Sarsour has a lot of supporters. But she also has her fair share of detractors. Sarsour has been repeatedly isolated as a harbinger of hate and violence, most recently in a New York…

  By Steven Davidson Aug 3, 2017 | 5 min read
• 
  Opinion

  Orthodox Judge Blames Religious School System for Overdose

  The Orthodox community was rattled last month when 20-year old Malky Klein, daughter of Avrohom and Rifka Klein of Boro Park, died of a heroine overdose. Social media flooded with tearful reflection. A podcast interview with Klein’s father went viral. A video tribute to the young woman got 28,000 views within a week. Over $250,000…

  By Avital Chizhik-Goldschmidt Aug 3, 2017 | 3 min read
• 
  Opinion

  The Rise and Fall of American Jewish Hope

  For six months of this year, from June to November, we Jews will be caught in a symbolically fraught interlude in our history. We are officially betwixt the 50th anniversary of the Six-Day War of June 5, 1967, and the 100th anniversary of the Balfour Declaration of November 2, 1917. They are two events that…

  By J.J. Goldberg Aug 3, 2017 | 6 min read
• 
  Opinion

  I Wrote About The Opioid Crisis In The Jewish Community. The Response Was Overwhelming.

  Yesterday, I published a piece in these pages on the opioid epidemic and how it has affected the Jewish community. When I shared the piece on social media, I explained what has drawn me to covering this crisis. When I was 19 years old and a sophomore in college, my father committed suicide. We discovered…

  By Bethany Mandel Aug 2, 2017 | 12 min read
• 
  Opinion

  It’s Time To Admit That The Opioid Crisis Is Also A Jewish One

  Earlier this month, the 5 Towns Jewish Times published a shocking statistic: Since October 2016, over 100 young people from New York’s Orthodox community had died from drug overdoses. One 10-day span saw five deaths. “It is a scourge that is inflicting our community in a most shocking and unexpected way,” the author of the…

  By Bethany Mandel Aug 1, 2017 | 3 min read
• 
  Opinion

  This Day in 1492, Spanish Jews Were Expelled — and Columbus Set Sail

  This date — August 1 on the Gregorian calendar, coinciding with the 9th day of Av 5777 on the Hebrew calendar — marks a very significant juncture in Jewish and world history. It was on this day in 1492 that Jews were expelled from Spain, bringing a dramatic and brutal end to what had once…

  By J.J. Goldberg Aug 1, 2017 | 2 min read
• 
  Opinion

  Jane Looking Forward: To Cuss Or Not To Cuss, JNF And More

  In the one story published by the Forward last week about (now former) White House communications director Anthony Scaramucci, we didn’t cuss. We didn’t have to. The story was about a biblical reference to Cain and Abel that Scaramucci made on CNN, the closest we came to a Jewish angle of the R-rated reality show…

  By Jane Eisner Jul 31, 2017 | 3 min read
• 
  Opinion

  Why Are We Still Fasting On Tisha B’Av? Even The Rabbis Of The Talmud Were Over It.

  On the list of Things a Good Jew Should Do, fasting on Tisha B’Av ranks pretty low on my list. Now, before my rabbi has a minor heart attack, I should confess that despite my misgivings, like many observant Jews around the world, I will be refraining from eating, drinking, bathing, wearing leather shoes and…

  By Laura E. Adkins Jul 31, 2017 | 3 min read