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
Is Orlando About Islamist Terrorism, Homophobia, Mental Illness or Guns?
Was the hideous mass shooting at an Orlando, Florida, gay nightclub due to Islamist terrorism, homophobia, mental illness or guns? All of the above — and that is precisely the problem. In the short time since the attack — the 49 victims have only just been identified — politicians and pundits of all stripes have…
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Opinion How Hasidic-Owned B&H Photo Store Puts Money Before God’s Word
(CLARIFICATION BELOW) Muslims have the Kaaba in Mecca. Sikhs have the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Photographers have B&H on the west side of Manhattan. To call it an audio and visual equipment store is like calling Katz’s Deli a mere sandwich shop. There’s a reason you’ll hear numerous languages spoken on the floors of B&H….
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Opinion Why Avigdor Lieberman Might Just Be the Key to Mideast Peace. Really.
It could turn out to be the biggest surprise of the year in Middle East diplomacy: Avigdor Lieberman, Israel’s blustering, ultra-nationalist new defense minister, just might be the key to reviving the moribund Israeli-Palestinian peace process. So, at least, say several key sources familiar with a complex round of behind-the-scenes Israeli-Arab contacts. Lieberman’s significance lies…
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Opinion Will Orlando Massacre Help Hillary Clinton Unite Nation — or Give Opening to Donald Trump?
The massacre in Orlando, the worst mass shooting in U.S. history and the worst terror incident since 9/11, is a terrible human tragedy, first and foremost. It will shock even those Americans who have grown numb to the daily recurrence of mass-shootings in their country. Orlando, renowned for making children’s dreams come true, will now…
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Opinion What Ties Orlando Massacre to Europe Terror Attacks — and Why It’s an All-American Tragedy
The time that elapsed between the initial reports on American networks of the carnage in the Pulse nightclub in Orland, Florida — when the incident was labelled a “mass-shooting” — and its definition as a terror attack symbolizes the West’s 21st-century difficulty in classifying murders carried out for ideology, religion and politics. Even when the details…
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Opinion Is B’Tselem Right To Quit Playing ‘Middle Man’ for the IDF?
B’Tselem, Israel’s human rights watchdog organization, made waves recently when it announced that it will no longer refer cases of alleged abuse to the Israel Defense Forces for disciplinary action. In a report, B’Tselem says that “cooperation with the military investigation and enforcement systems has not achieved justice, instead lending legitimacy to the occupation regime…
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Opinion Hillary Needs To Get Her Funny On — and Al Franken as Veep Could Help!
Donald Trump’s popularity seems unharmed by his lack of experience, integrity or policies. Even repeating the “textbook definition of a racist comment” in public in a way that his own party disavows hasn’t stopped him from reaching 85% approval ratings among Republican voters. So how does Hillary Clinton counter the smears (that Bill is a…
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Opinion Anthropologists’s Narrow Vote Against Israel Boycott Is Not the Last Word
Ancient Athens had its way of social shunning. Citizens would write on pieces of broken pottery the names of those they wanted to banish. Enough shards, and that person would be expelled from the city. The pottery fragments were known as “Ostraka,” and the rite itself came to be known as “ostracism.” The modern counterpart…
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Opinion Of Course Bernie Sanders Is Grumpy, It’s His Genetic Imperative
On Tuesday June 7, Bernie Sanders got crushed by Hillary Clinton in the California Democratic primary. Since then the pundits have been lunging at keyboards and cameras to explain why he refuses to concede the nomination race. Many focus on his personality — with the most notable attack coming in a Politico piece that describes…
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Opinion Why the Tel Aviv Terror Attack Is Different — and What Comes Next
The cold-blooded murders of four Israelis at the popular Sarona mall in Tel Aviv on June 8 brings to 38 the number of Israelis and visitors killed in the wave of Palestinian terrorist attacks that began last September 13, according to official government figures. Another 466 have been injured. In several important respects, though, the…
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Opinion Donald Trump Is a Candidate for White Supremacists — Not the Jews
I’ll say it plainly: The high-profile Jews supporting Donald Trump make me sick. This is not about Democratic and Republican politics; I’ve certainly never said the same thing about supporters of (any) Bush. It’s about white supremacy. Let’s take “white supremacy” out of the realm of insult. It is an ideology, after all, not simply…
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