Opinion

• Opinion

  Why Benjamin Netanyahu May Look at the Math — and Cut Deal on Peace Plan

  There are plenty of good reasons to doubt whether Benjamin Netanyahu has any real intention of reaching a peace agreement with the Palestinians. He keeps approving new settlement construction in the territories where the Palestinians expect to build their state. He keeps coming up with new security red lines — control of the Jordan Valley,…

  By J.J. Goldberg

  4 min read
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  Opinion

  News Quiz: Zach Braff’s New Movie and Downton Abbey

  From Zach Braff to Downton Abbey to rye bread and herring. It’s not as big a leap as you might think!

  By Lenore Skenazy Jan 20, 2014 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  The (Hillel) Kids Are Alright

  The Jewish world seems worried about Hillel. “Are you okay?” people keep asking me. Our phones at Ohio University Hillel are ringing with those calling to hear the “real” story, or to leave long-winded diatribes on our voicemail. Reporters ask if we’ll answer a few questions (no thanks). Hillel has been in The New York…

  By Danielle Leshaw Jan 20, 2014 | 3 min read

Columnists View All

• Jodi Rudoren This is my last column as editor of the Forward

  

• Jay Michaelson Being Jewish in America today feels like walking multiple tightropes at once

  

• Rob Eshman A precise, Chekhovian logic guided Israel’s strike on Iran — but chaos could come next

  

• Nora Berman Greta Thunberg’s Gaza flotilla was never going to help Palestinians

  

• Dan Perry Celebrating my daughter’s birthday in a bomb shelter, as missiles struck Tel Aviv

  

• Emily Tamkin Trump’s latest move makes Mahmoud Khalil a Joseph for our times

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  How Israel’s Politics vs. Security Rift Aids Jihadis

  Hamas fighters testing a Gaza-made M-75 long-range missile, November 2013 / Getty Images Maariv’s Eli Bardenstein offered a stunningly clear and disturbing report (in Hebrew, my translation below) on Friday that illustrates the vexing complications introduced into the triangular Jerusalem-Cairo-Gaza relationship by political turmoil in all three places. It makes a very useful companion piece…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jan 19, 2014 | 5 min read
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  Opinion

  11 Reasons To Love — or Hate — SodaStream

  REASONS TO LOVE: 1 — It’s delicious. What Jew doesn’t like seltzer? 2 — It’s eco-friendly, saving massive amounts of otherwise virtually indestructible plastic waste. 3 — It could feasibly pay for itself. 4 — According to MSNBC, it’s the largest job provider for local Palestinian workers. 5 — It comes in invigorating Energy Drink,…

  By Elisheva Goldberg Jan 18, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  How Israel Went From Beacon of Hope to ‘Normal’ Outpost of Reaction

  The literature on Jewish self-hate is vast; not so the literature on Jewish self-love. Max Weber once proposed that oppressed peoples develop a “theodicy of disprivilege,” a way of explaining to themselves (and compensating for) their persecution, and that the most common such theodicies rely on the assertion by the oppressed of their superior moral…

  By Leonard Fein Jan 18, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Funny: Bibi Rips MK’s Bill To Micromanage His Talks

  Benjamin Netanyahu with Likud ministers at weekly cabinet meeting, Sunday, January 12, 2014. From left: Gilad Erdan (communications); Yuval Steinitz (intelligence); Netanyahu; cabinet secretary Avichai Mandelblit; Gideon Saar (interior) / Getty Images When should the legislature intrude on the executive branch’s authority to conduct foreign policy by seeking to dictate the terms of sensitive negotiations?…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jan 17, 2014 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  British Jews Angry Over Unpunished ‘Quenelle’

  Nicolas Anelka, center, celebrates a goal before flashing the anti-Semitic ‘quenelle.’ / Getty Images It has been almost three weeks since West Bromwich Albion striker Nicolas Anelka celebrated scoring two goals against West Ham United by doing the quenelle, the reverse Nazi salute popularized in France by comedian Dieudonné M’bala M’bala. Yet Anelka remains unpunished….

  By Liam Hoare Jan 17, 2014 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Conservative and Reform Rabbis Deserve Same Recognition as Avi Weiss and Orthodox

  (JTA) — The good news is in: Rabbi Avi Weiss’ conversions will be accepted in Israel. I am glad to see that the religious integrity and leadership of Rabbi Weiss has been acknowledged. Undoubtedly, this course correction on the part of the Israeli Chief Rabbinate is due in part to the hue and cry of…

  By Julie Schonfeld Jan 17, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  How Loehmann’s Transformed Shopping Forever — and Gave Me a Million Memories

  So long, Loehmann’s. After a series of store closings and bankruptcies over the past 15 years, the retailer has decided to call it quits, citing a sluggish economy and a failure to implement an effective e-commerce strategy as the causes of its demise. This marks the end of not just deep discounts on designer clothes,…

  By Elissa Strauss Jan 17, 2014 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  ADL’s One-State Double Standard

  Chile’s El Palestino soccer club recently raised the ire of pro-Israel groups when it decided to redesign its team jerseys, replacing the numeral one with a one-state map of Palestine. Because they show the entire map of Israel as Palestine, these jerseys effectively erase Israel, making it seem like the state doesn’t exist. In a…

  By Sigal Samuel Jan 16, 2014 | 3 min read