Opinion

• Opinion

  Marshall Berman, Marxist Mentsch, Dies at 72

  You’d notice Marshall Berman, if you saw him. Back when I commuted to the City College of New York from my parents’ apartment in the late 1960s, my father certainly did. He rushed into our apartment to excitedly report that “a hippie” was entering our next-door neighbor’s place, a colleague of Berman’s at CCNY. Berman…

  By Ralph Seliger

  3 min read
• Opinion

  Fasting in Israel’s Heatwave

  Israel is getting ready for the hottest and longest Yom Kippur for decades. Well, not actually longer than normal, but it will feel longer. Israel has long adjusted the clock to wintertime ahead of the fast, so that it finishes some time between six and seven pm, rather than between seven and eight. But following…

  By Nathan Jeffay Sep 13, 2013 | 2 min read
• 
  Opinion

  When Putin Speaks

  It’s hard to know exactly how to respond to Vladimir Putin’s op-ed essay in Thursday’s New York Times. On the one hand, polls show that most Americans agree with his call to avoid American military engagement in Syria. On the other hand, very few of us want to come out and agree with Putin. Apparently…

  By J.J. Goldberg Sep 13, 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 ‘Eddington’ is full of conspiracy theories but it’s not about Jews. Or is it?

  

• 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

• 
  Opinion

  The Dark Truth That Explains Unemployment

  You may have noticed, if you follow this sort of thing, that unemployment declined in August. The jobless rate was 7.3%, according to the monthly report from the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics. That’s down from 7.4% in July. For context, it peaked at 10% in October 2009, at the height of the financial meltdown,…

  By J.J. Goldberg Sep 13, 2013 | 5 min read
• 
  Opinion

  This Week in Milestones: War, Peace, Deep Space

  We’re in a season of anniversaries and memories, many of them exceedingly melancholy: the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy that ignited the global financial crisis, September 15, 2008 (5 years ago); the World Trade Center and Pentagon attacks, September 11, 2001 (12 years ago); the outbreak of the Yom Kippur War, 10 Tishri 1973 (40 years ago…

  By J.J. Goldberg Sep 13, 2013 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Poem: Assad’s Cataract

  Recently, blind Israeli poet Erez Bitton — who reportedly lost his sight at the age of 10 when he found a hand grenade — approached noted translator Tsipi Keller about the possibility of translating some of his work. Among the works was the poem “Assad’s Catarat.” The poem takes as its starting point the fact…

  By Erez Bitton and Translated by Tsipi Keller Sep 12, 2013 | < 1 min read
• 
  Opinion

  Not Turning a Blind Eye

  There is one point of agreement in the otherwise fractious and dispiriting public debate on how, if at all, to respond to the Syrian government’s use of chemical weapons against its own people: America is in an isolationist mood. With each new poll comes mounting evidence that Americans oppose military strikes against Syria and, more…

  Sep 12, 2013 | 4 min read
• 
  Opinion

  Songs to Atone By: Dylan, Jolson, Streisand, Oysher

  As we approach the holiest day of the year, I’ve put together a selection of songs that sum up the day and capture its spirit, at least for me. I’ve tried to follow the order of the day, from the introductory prayer to Kol Nidre, the Maariv service, some highlights of Mussaf, the Jonah story…

  By J.J. Goldberg Sep 12, 2013 | 6 min read
• 
  Opinion

  Quebec’s Kippah Problem

  In 1738, a young Catholic man named Jacques La Fargue came to New France. Jacques La Fargue turned out to be Esther Brandeau, a young Jewish woman who had disguised herself to come to the new world. When she refused to convert, she was sent back to France. Jews were officially allowed to settle in…

  By Lisa J. Grushcow Sep 11, 2013 | 4 min read
• 
  Opinion

  Back to School Reflects British Success Story

  In London’s school uniform shops, the experienced sales clerks know what Jewish parents will order before they open their mouths. The shops carry the clothing with embroidered crests for numerous schools, but today, you can normally guess from the parents which school their children go to, and therefore which uniform they want. The frum-ness level…

  By Nathan Jeffay Sep 11, 2013 | 2 min read
• 
  Opinion

  The French Intellectual Who Is Both in the Shadows and in the Spotlight

  Have you heard about the sinister role the French intellectual Bernard-Henri Lévy, in cahoots with the Israeli government, played in bringing down the government of Egypt’s president, Mohamed Morsi? And that BHL — aka He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named-but-Wears-White-Shirts-Opened-to-the-Navel — used telekinesis to achieve his nefarious goal? These, at least, are the questions that recent news dispatches from Turkey…

  By Robert Zaretsky Sep 11, 2013 | 3 min read