Opinion

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  A Bubble Not Burst

  Martin Buber tells the story of Rabbi Levi Yitzhak of Berdichev. Before Passover, the great rabbi was inspecting the local matzo factory to make sure it was kosher. Afterward, he said, ”This factory is not kosher.” When the shocked factory owner said, “We have followed all of the laws of kashrut,” the rabbi explained: “The…

  2 min read
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  Opinion

  Why Abbas Was Right to Blink

  The Palestinians never miss an opportunity to miss an opportunity. Right? That’s the joke anyway — has been for the last fifty years. And it’s what I thought when I first heard that the Abbas government picked now, of all moments, to apply for membership in fifteen UN organizations. Couldn’t they have waited a month,…

  By Jay Michaelson Apr 8, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Palestinians Seen Easing Terms for Renewing Talks

  The Palestinian daily Al Quds reported on its website Monday afternoon, quoting a “knowledgeable source,” that the Palestinian leadership had decided to return to the negotiating table for two more months, with the aim of laying out the borders between Israel and a potential Palestinian state, according to Walla! News reporter Amir Tibon. The source…

  By J.J. Goldberg Apr 7, 2014 | 2 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

  

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  Opinion

  France’s Quickly Changing Face

  Last week, as France woke up to the results of the second round of municipal elections, the on-line newspaper Rue 89 breathlessly announced: “Miracle at Lourdes!” The event, to be sure, was more dazzling than a cripple throwing off her crutches or a blind man again seeing: a Socialist had won the mayor’s race! It…

  By Robert Zaretsky Apr 7, 2014 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Finding My Family’s Kabbalistic Roots in India

  “What are you doing?” I asked my grandmother. Sitting across the table from her at last year’s family Passover Seder, I had been watching with rapt attention as she peeled an egg — a commonly featured food on the Seder plate. She was handling it with a degree of carefulness that bordered on the neurotic,…

  By Sigal Samuel Apr 7, 2014 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Queer Passover Seder Helped Me Reclaim Judaism

  An alternative Seder plate holds a coconut, representing closeted LGBTQ youth. / JQ International At the time, it didn’t occur to me to be offended or concerned that I was being circled by the cheerleaders and other popular girls who held hands, bowed their heads and prayed for my soul. They were part of “Christian…

  By Stosh Cotler Apr 7, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  The Irony of Celebrating Passover in Egypt

  An Egyptian policeman in front of the Shaar Hashamayim Synagogue in Cairo, Egypt. / Haaretz In early April 2012, two friends and I visited the Shaar Hashamayim Synagogue in downtown Cairo to observe the first night of Passover in Egypt. The irony was too obvious to point out, and so we didn’t. When we arrived,…

  By Jake Meth Apr 7, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Peering Into the Minds of the Climate Doubters

  It’s a truism of science that major, transformative events provide unique opportunities to gather data. Seismologists wait for earthquakes to measure tectonic movement. Research meteorologists risk their lives chasing tornadoes to learn their mysteries. Zoologists swing into action during mating season (of the animals, silly). Climate study can work in much the same way. Take…

  By J.J. Goldberg Apr 7, 2014 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  The Ukrainian Revolution’s Unlikely Street-Fighting Rabbi

  The following interview is with Natan Khazin, commander of a Jewish squadron of fighters in the Ukrainian revolution that took place in Kiev’s Maidan, or central square. It aired on March 20 on Espreso TV, a popular Ukrainian Internet television station and was the first time that Khazin disclosed his identity in public. Khazin was…

  By David E. Fishman Apr 7, 2014 | 6 min read
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  Opinion

  New Generation of Rabbis Sees and Speaks Israel

  Breaking the Silence Despite the concept of the occupation being an oddly contested one in some American political circles of late, there is much to decry about Israel’s military rule over the Palestinians in the West Bank. And while some security-minded observers focus on the need for an IDF military presence to widen Israel’s narrow…

  By Mira Sucharov Apr 7, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Free Pollard. It’s the Left-Wing Thing To Do.

  Getty Images As the debate over whether to pardon convicted spy Jonathan Pollard continues, the most vocal support for his release is coming from the conservative side: AIPAC, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and, most recently, families of Israeli terror victims. Meanwhile, outlets like the Forward are arguing against the release, unwilling to send the…

  By Anna Momigliano Apr 6, 2014 | 3 min read