Opinion

• Opinion

  The Yom Kippur When I Lost My Faith

  It is a bit strange to write this, but the Six Day War was, for me, an extension of high school. At school we learned about the War of Independence and its many battles. Each Memorial Day, I was the one who read to the students the sad poems about the fallen soldiers. I was…

  By Yossi Beilin

  4 min read
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  Opinion

  ‘Half of Syrian Rebels’ Are Radical Islamists

  Nearly half the rebels fighting in Syria are jihadists linked to Al Qaeda or hardline Islamists fighting for a strict Islamic state, according to a study that’s about to be published by IHS Jane’s, the respected British defense consultancy. Advance word of the study appears in Monday’s edition of Britain’s Daily Telegraph. The Jane’s study…

  By J.J. Goldberg Sep 16, 2013 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  In the Trenches, Panic and Disillusionment

  The officers arriving at Gen. Albert Mendler’s headquarters in the Refidim base in the Sinai had come for a farewell party, but instead found themselves at a war briefing. It was Friday, October 5, 1973, the day before Yom Kippur. Mendler, commander of the only armored division in the Sinai, was supposed to leave on…

  By Abraham Rabinovich Sep 15, 2013 | 4 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 An Israeli media mainstay is crumbling. Will liberal democracy go with it?

  

• Emily Tamkin The fundamental miscalculation behind the GOP’s antisemitism crisis

  

The Latest

• 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 Sep 13, 2013 | 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
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  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
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  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
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  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
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  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
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  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