Opinion

• Opinion

  Oslo’s Successes and Failures, 20 Years Later

  We’re all on anniversary overload lately: 40 years since the Yom Kippur War, 12 years since 9/11, five years since Lehman Brothers collapsed. But there’s another event that requires urgent attention: the Rabin-Arafat handshake on the White House lawn, September 13, 1993, the moment known in Middle East diplo-speak as Oslo. It’s called Oslo because…

  By J.J. Goldberg

  4 min read
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  Opinion

  How David Ingber Got ‘God Intoxicated’

  Rabbi David Ingber is the spiritual leader (and main draw) for Romemu, a fast-growing congregation on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. Its quest for spiritual meaning can hardly be disassociated from Ingber’s personal journey. Born and raised in a Modern Orthodox family, Ingber, 44, was drawn to ultra-Orthodoxy while on a gap-year program in Israel in…

  By Anne Cohen Sep 20, 2013 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Jews Now Minority in Israel and Territories

  One of the most common arguments in favor of the two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the so-called demographic threat or demographic time-bomb. Proponents worry that if Israel continues to control the Palestinian territories, with or without formal annexation, the different birthrates of Jews and Arabs will eventually result in Jews being a minority…

  By J.J. Goldberg Sep 20, 2013 | 4 min read

Columnists View All

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

  

• Jay Michaelson American Jews were played — now what?

  

• Rob Eshman I have the answer to Jon Stewart’s toughest question about Israel

  

• Nora Berman The left is turning on AOC over Israel — and imperiling its own agenda

  

• Dan Perry Recognizing a Palestinian state is a great way to doom Palestinians

  

• Emily Tamkin Is starvation in Gaza really Israel’s fault? The facts are clear

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  What Iran Leader’s ‘Shana Tova’ Tweet Really Means

  President Obama has now confirmed that he has indeed exchanged letters with Iran’s new president, Hassan Rowhani. It is but one of a flurry of recent signals that the United States and Iran are considering direct talks in an effort to see if they can diplomatically resolve concerns over Iran’s nuclear program. Asked by George…

  By Laura Rozen Sep 19, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Don’t Ban ‘Y-Word’ From British Soccer

  “There is a problem in my country… and this problem is the Jew,” Borat chanted famously. But it may as well be David Baddiel singing. Who is David Baddiel, you ask? He is a mid-table British comedian who has initiated a campaign to expunge what he calls the “Y-word” from British football chants. The Y-word,…

  By Eddy Portnoy Sep 18, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Striking Sukkahs

  Happy Sukkot! Starting Wednesday night, we can all look forward to a week of eating (and in some cases, sleeping) outside. Sukkahs come in all shapes and sizes. Some people will cobble something in their backyard, others will use the handy space provided by an outdoor balcony, and still more may see it as a…

  By Anne Cohen Sep 18, 2013 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Tale of Two Beauty Queens

  Let’s begin by acknowledging that there is something profoundly anachronistic about beauty pageants in the 21st century. The idea that strutting around in swimsuits the size of postage stamps and answering inane questions in less time than it takes to apply lipstick are measures by which to judge the beauty and goodness of unmarried women…

  Sep 18, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Poverty Shock: Stats Show Ills Began in 2001, Not ’07

  Just in time for the fall harvest festival of Sukkot, the U.S. Census Bureau has published what we might call a 2013 update of America’s own Harvest of Shame: a comprehensive annual report on the state of income, poverty and health insurance in the United States. To be fair, it’s not all bad news. For…

  By J.J. Goldberg Sep 18, 2013 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  Is ‘Beyond the Two-State Solution’ Poised for Prime-Time?

  The crisis in Syria, has overwhelmed discussion of other Middle East issues in the past month, not the least of them being the 20th anniversary of the signing of the Oslo Accords between Israel and the Palestinians. Still, the passage of two decades with little or no progress in the peace process has not passed…

  By Nathan Guttman Sep 17, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Middle East Peace, One Kitchen at a Time

  This is how things could be in the new year. The population of the country, Jews and Arabs, will live in peace and tolerance, work the land together and sit and share meals in the shade of the grapevine and the fig tree. Men and women will fall in love and start families without being…

  By Haaretz/Hedai Offaim Sep 17, 2013 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Jewish Family Feud Rocks Las Vegas

  Some feuding families bury the hatchet around the High Holidays, discarding grudges and grievances in the spirit of renewal. But that’s not happening for the Greenspun siblings of Las Vegas. Scions of a storied newspaper clan, the Greenspuns have been torn apart by a dispute over the future of the Las Vegas Sun, founded by…

  By Michael Kaminer Sep 17, 2013 | 3 min read