Opinion

• Opinion

  It’s a Nazi Slogan, Dude

  Readers might not expect a lot of historical analysis from the British tabloid The Daily Mail. But it shouldn’t be too much for the editors to at least remember Nazi Germany and some of its signature evil. That’s why it was particularly disturbing to see this item uncovered by the Twittersphere this morning from a…

  By Liam Hoare

  2 min read
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  Opinion

  Anonymous Pamphlets Underline Haredi Splits

  The monochromatic ocean of Haredim at the funeral of Rabbi Yosef Shalom Elyashiv last month concealed a deeper undercurrent of dissent. Elyashiv, the acknowledged leader of the Ultra-Orthodox Lithuanian community, had roped together two competing factions among a group usually seen as monolithic. There are the conservatives, led by Shmuel Auerbach of Jerusalem, as well…

  By Josh Harrison Aug 13, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Adelson’s Ethics

  Writing on The New York Times website, Thomas B. Edsall, a professor of journalism at Columbia University, pointed to the possible religious ramifications of the political and financial relationship between Mitt Romney and his most generous backer, casino mogul Sheldon Adelson. “The source of Adelson’s huge campaign contributions would appear to create a conflict with…

  Aug 13, 2012 | 3 min read

Columnists View All

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

  

• Jay Michaelson I supported Israel’s actions in Gaza in October 2023 — not anymore

  

• Rob Eshman The staggering hypocrisy behind Trump’s deal to free the last living American hostage

  

• Nora Berman She’s a titan of Israeli architecture. Her story contains troubling lessons for her country

  

• Dan Perry It looks like Israel totally underestimated Trump

  

• Emily Tamkin This week proved it: Trump’s approach to antisemitism at Columbia is horribly ineffective

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  When ‘Unity’ Means Unity of the Orthodox

  “Achdus Klal Yisroel.” At the recent Siyum HaShas, celebrating the completion of the 7-and-half-year Daf Yomi (page-a-day) Talmud regimen, that phrase — “unity of the Jewish people” — resounded like a mantra. At the ceremony, which took place at the MetLife stadium in East Rutherford, N.J., the idea of unity was affirmed by nearly every…

  By Ezra Glinter Aug 12, 2012 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Ryan Could Be Four-Letter Word for Jews

  Mitt Romney’s pick of Congressional budget hawk Paul Ryan as his running mate could leave the campaign with tough questions to answer with key Jewish constituencies this fall. The selection of Ryan, the hotshot 42-year-old congressman from Wisconsin whose proposals for a trimmed-down federal budget have made him a household name, seems to have excited…

  By Josh Nathan-Kazis Aug 12, 2012 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Mitt’s Meeting With Controversial Conservative

  Mitt Romney has came under fire for meeting with William (Jerry) Boykin, a retired U.S. Army officer who is now executive vice president of the Family Research Council, a leading Christian conservative organization. Boykin has enraged the Muslim-American community with anti-Muslim remarks which date back to his days in uniform but have intensified after his…

  By Nathan Guttman Aug 11, 2012 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Grace Meng Plays the Israel Card

  Grace Meng has discovered her inner Israel hawk. Meng is the New York City Councilwoman who won a Democratic congressional primary in Gary Ackerman’s district in Queens this summer. In an op-ed in the Jewish Week yesterday, Meng suggested that President Obama “could have been — and still can be — a greater friend to…

  By Josh Nathan-Kazis Aug 10, 2012 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  ‘Aly Raisman’s Our Superstar’!

  We have a preschool ritual every Friday. It’s called Superstar Shabbat. In 16 years it hasn’t really ever changed. Each preschooler is assigned to a particular Friday morning throughout the year. Often two or three kids will share a Shabbat. They – well, their parents – create posters with drawings, pictures, etc and show them…

  By Keith Stern Aug 10, 2012 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  5 Things You Didn’t Know About Tanglewood

  • A 20% Solution: Tanglewood’s educational center has trained one out of every five American orchestral musicians. • A Beef with Mr. Copland: While driving with colleagues to Tanglewood on a dark, foggy night, Aaron Copland was arrested for an accident that wrecked his Studebaker and killed a cow. Nevertheless, the National Cattlemen’s Beef Association…

  By Raphael Mostel Aug 10, 2012 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Stop the Rampage

  Just because another week brought another deadly, senseless murder rampage, it should not lessen our outrage or our commitment to protect the public good. Do we need yet another reason to reinstate the federal ban on assault weapons? Wade Michael Page used a Springfield 9mm semiautomatic handgun to carry out the attack August 5 at…

  Aug 10, 2012 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Drop ‘Silly’ Defamation Suit, Sheldon

  Editor’s note: Sheldon Adelson, the casino executive and Republican political donor, filed a defamation suit yesterday against the National Jewish Democratic Council and its leadership over an article posted on the Democratic group’s website repeating allegations that Adelson approved of prostitution at his casinos on the Chinese island of Macao. The $60 million suit, filed…

  By Marc R. Stanley Aug 9, 2012 | 3 min read