Opinion

• Opinion

  Second Chances?

  Yes, America loves a second chance. Even politicians who have been scorched in a sex scandal — sex being far more problematic than money or violence when it comes to sin — often rise Phoenix-like to run another campaign and chase after redemption at the ballot box. Rewarding the Comeback Kid knows no partisan, geographic…

  3 min read
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  Opinion

  Could Settlements Ease Israel Housing Crisis?

  Two years after the Tel Aviv social protest movement was born out of anger at high property prices, Israelis have been told that they’ve misunderstood the problem all along. It is, the new Housing Minister insists, that there’s too little settlement activity. “The key to immediately stopping the rise in home prices is massive building…

  By Nathan Jeffay Jul 11, 2013 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  When ‘Little Rivka’ Marries Yitzchak

  I refuse to teach my 2-year-old daughter the story, in Genesis chapter 24-25, where the commentary Rashi describes 3-year-old Rivka marrying 40-year-old Yitzchak. The book “Kind Little Rivka,” which also chronicles the story of this underage marriage, is no longer on her bookshelf. I recently purchased the book on Amazon after a quick review of…

  By Eliyahu Federman Jul 11, 2013 | 3 min read

Columnists View All

• Alyssa Katz What I learned at a Holocaust survivors’ Purim party

  

• Rob Eshman Gavin Newsom isn’t waffling on Israel — he’s voicing sensible ideas in an era of outrage

  

• Dan Perry An abominable new Israeli law is a death warrant for democracy

  

• Emily Tamkin We must rewrite the rulebook for fighting antisemitism — or conspiracists like Joe Kent will win the narrative wars

  

• Jay Michaelson Passover’s 4 cups of meaning

  

The Latest

• Opinion

  News Quiz: Eliot Spitzer’s Return, Edward Snowden

  This week’s news quiz deals with obsessions political, sexual and Jewish. (You were expecting, maybe, Irish?) Plus, more anti-Semitism than you can shake a stick at — so don’t even bother looking for a stick.

  By Lenore Skenazy Jul 10, 2013 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Ramadan Arrives — With Unique Challenge for Israel

  Ramadan has just started, and an estimated 1 million Muslims from the West Bank will enter Israel to spend part of the holiday with relations here. The defense establishment has become more confident about giving access to Israel for Arab holidays — and for the main part things have been smooth. The opening of the…

  By Nathan Jeffay Jul 10, 2013 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  The Ignored Jewish Poor

  Forty years ago, the Metropolitan Council on Jewish Poverty was founded in response to growing concerns that Jewish poverty was largely overlooked, something that was too taboo to discuss. We were all shocked when the 2002 Jewish Community Study first showed that there were 226,000 Jews living in poverty in New York City. Unfortunately the…

  By William E. Rapfogel Jul 10, 2013 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Is Haredi Draft Glass Full — or Empty?

  After years of debate, pressure and protest, on Sunday Israel’s cabinet approved legislation to draft ultra-Orthodox men for national service. The lobby that agitated for legislation has been quick to label it a sellout, counter-productive, and a passing of the buck. Pro-draft activists say that they wanted a law that makes service for Haredim compulsory…

  By Nathan Jeffay Jul 10, 2013 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Britain’s U-Turn on Teaching Hebrew

  The British Department for Education (DfE) today announced a U-turn on its previously-proposed policy that would have limited the scope of Jewish elementary schools in the United Kingdom to teach Hebrew as a modern foreign language. As The Forward previously reported, under controversial plans released last December as part of an overall reform of the…

  By Liam Hoare Jul 9, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Benjamin Netanyahu’s Indecision Is Roadblock to Peace Push

  I was on the phone the other day with a very senior adviser to a string of former Likud leaders and prime ministers, mostly listening while he talked about Secretary of State John Kerry and his marathon Israeli-Palestinian peace-processing. He wasn’t optimistic. His main reason for pessimism: Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s reluctance to risk collapsing…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jul 9, 2013 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Camp Tawonga’s Missed Opportunity

  It was surely difficult for leaders of Camp Tawonga to arrive at their decision not to tell their young charges about the shocking death of 21-year-old art counselor Annais Rittenberg after she was hit by a falling tree last week. My colleague Renee Ghert-Zand deftly captured their challenge in her Forward Thinking post yesterday. Since…

  By Debra Nussbaum Cohen Jul 9, 2013 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Revolt Grows Against ‘Racist’ Chief Rabbi Bids

  The race for Sephardic chief rabbi of Israel keeps getting uglier. The lead contender, Safed’s municipal Chief Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu, is the subject of a legal investigation by state attorney general Yehuda Weinstein. Weinstein’s action comes in response to a formal complaint by Labor Party lawmaker Eitan Cabel over Eliyahu’s 2010 ban on sale or…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jul 9, 2013 | 2 min read