Opinion

• Opinion

  Graham Spanier Opens Up on Abuse — His Own

  Getty Images Graham Spanier, the Jewish president of Penn State ousted during the school’s sexual abuse scandal, opened up about the abuse he suffered at the hands of his immigrant father in a new profile in the New York Times Magazine by Mike Sokolove. Spanier, whose 16-year tenure at Penn State ended abruptly in November…

  By Hody Nemes

  3 min read
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  Opinion

  Israel’s ‘Moral Army’?

  Palestinians rush wounded boy to safety after Israeli mortar killed four boys playing soccer on a Gaza beach. Getty Images (Haaretz) — You probably know Israel’s army as the Israel Defense Forces, but the IDF has a more controversial name for itself: the “moral army.” For those unused to this rhetoric, hearing it at a…

  By Michael Mitchell Jul 18, 2014 | 5 min read
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  Opinion

  Black Hats and Wigs Do Not an Orthodox Jew Make

  Several years ago, when I was penning a weekly column for a Haredi magazine, the periodical declined to publish one of my submissions. It was about “Cultural Orthodox Jews,” a phrase I coined for people who eat only rabbinically supervised foods, wear black hats (or wigs), pray in synagogue daily and send their kids to…

  Jul 17, 2014 | 3 min read

Columnists View All

• Alyssa Katz What I learned at a Holocaust survivors’ Purim party

  

• Rob Eshman Gavin Newsom isn’t waffling on Israel — he’s voicing sensible ideas in an era of outrage

  

• Dan Perry The moral degradation of Israel’s far-right is even worse than you think

  

• Emily Tamkin We must rewrite the rulebook for fighting antisemitism — or conspiracists like Joe Kent will win the narrative wars

  

• Jay Michaelson Antisemitism is exploding on the right but the Jewish establishment is focused on the left

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  Why Jews Everywhere Bear Brunt of Israel Actions

  German demonstrators join Europe-wide round of protests against Israel’s attack on Gaza. Unlike other groups, Jews are blamed for the actions of Israel — and are coming under attack worldwide. Getty Images. (Reuters) — As the death toll in Gaza rises, so does anger against Israel – and sometimes, by extension, Jews – in Europe…

  By John Lloyd Jul 17, 2014 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  I Remember Shock of First ‘Price Tag’ Attack

  The indictment today of three suspects for the revenge killing of the Palestinian teenager Muhammad Abu Khdeir has put this crime, knocked off the news agenda by the Hamas-Israel violence, back in people’s minds. As I have watched the reaction over the last 12 days to the news that Khdeir does appear to have lost…

  By Nathan Jeffay Jul 17, 2014 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  France Must Reckon With Its Anti-Semitism Problem

  When a crowd of people took the Bastille, the hulking prison in eastern Paris symbolizing the power of the monarchy, on July 14, 1789, they launched the French Revolution. This explains why popular demonstrations on behalf of the revolutionary ideals of 1789 — liberty, equality and fraternity — most often conclude at the towering column…

  By Robert Zaretsky Jul 17, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  From Crown Heights to Mississippi

  Malkie Schwartz stands in front of the Institute of Southern Jewish Life in Jackson, Mississippi. Turn off Highway I-55 N at Frontage Road in Jackson, Mississippi and you’ll come across a non-descript squat brown building. Inside is a trove of Jewish learning. The Institute of Southern Jewish Life (ISJL) delivers rabbinic services, educational programs and…

  By Anne Cohen and Sigal Samuel Jul 17, 2014 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Why Bibi Doesn’t Want To Invade Gaza

  It’s a harsh fact of life in a tough neighborhood like Israel’s, so Israelis will tell you, that when somebody hits you, even a little, you have to hit back hard. Otherwise the blows will keep coming until they do real damage. It doesn’t matter how puny today’s foe might look. If you let it…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jul 17, 2014 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Why Killing Kids on Gaza Beach Is Bad Hasbara

  Palestinians rush wounded boy to safety after Israeli mortar killed four boys playing soccer on a Gaza beach. Getty Images (JTA) — Israel’s fight in the PR war just got that much harder. Since the beginning of Operation Protective Edge last week, journalists and commentators — Jon Stewart included — have criticized Israel for the lopsided…

  By Ben Sales Jul 17, 2014 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  May Gaza Victims’ Memories Be a Blessing

  Courtesy of namesonwall.tumblr We read names. We say names out loud, and hold their souls on our breath. We record names with ink and carve them into stone; we raise them in national squares and on city streets. When lives are lost, those left behind do what they can to ensure that the names –…

  By Emily L. Hauser Jul 16, 2014 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Jewish Tea Party Guy’s Immigration ‘Fear’ Gaffe

  (JTA) — Arizona congressional candidate Adam Kwasman has drawn some national attention as one of the Jewish Republicans hoping to take Eric Cantor’s place as GOP Jew on Capitol Hill. He’s now made national news again, but for very much the wrong reasons. Kwasman, who is competing for the Republican nomination in the first district, was…

  By Anthony Weiss Jul 16, 2014 | < 1 min read