Opinion

• Opinion

  Father’s Lament for Son Who Should’ve Served

  My oldest son, now 19, studies in yeshiva full time. I ask him, almost every day: “When will you do army service?” I say: “A person with an iPhone or laptop should be in the army!” This is my common refrain, one my children have heard so many times at the table on Saturday afternoons…

  By William Kolbrener

  5 min read
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  Opinion

  Why Presbyterians Voted Against Divestment

  The failed attempt to divest Presbyterian church funds from three corporations selling equipment to the Israeli military came about because of bias among some church members, said the head of the group that led the Jewish push against the resolution. “I think there’s a huge part of the Presbyterian Church that really is not capable…

  By Josh Nathan-Kazis Jul 10, 2012 | 2 min read
• Opinion

  Stopping Violence Against Women

  Representative Jan Schakowsky, a Democrat from Illinois, recently sponsored a new bill aimed at curbing violence against women globally. The International Violence Against Women Act of 2012, which was co-sponsored by 47 other Democratic members of Congress, would establish an Office of Global Women’s Issues within the State Department and provide funding for gender-based foreign…

  By Renee Ghert-Zand Jul 10, 2012 | 2 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 A US official just made history in the West Bank — did he imperil prospects for peace?

  

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

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  The Marketplace for Synagogues

  About two-thirds of all Jews don’t belong to a synagogue. Some blame the unaffiliated for not joining; others blame the synagogues for not being interesting enough to join. I blame our system of synagogue membership. Any economist worth his salt would recognize the problem. Synagogue membership is like gym membership. It’s expensive and poorly used,…

  By Noam Neusner Jul 10, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Olmert Cleared in Case That Unseated Him

  Ehud Olmert, whose indictment and resignation in 2008 aborted his peace negotiations with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas and opened the way to the deadlock under Benjamin Netanyahu, was found not guilty this morning by the Jerusalem District Court of the main corruption charges that forced his resignation. And aborted the negotiations. The three-judge panel, which…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jul 10, 2012 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Is Adelson’s Money Tainted, or Not?

  A Jewish Democratic organization is facing heavy pushback over its effort to make billionaire Republican donor Sheldon Adelson a liability for Mitt Romney among Jewish voters. Pro-Israel heavy hitters Abe Foxman of the Anti-Defamation League and law professor Alan Dershowitz have lashed out in recent days at the National Jewish Democratic Council for calling on…

  By Josh Nathan-Kazis Jul 9, 2012 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Always a Difficult Balance

  More than a dozen years ago, I wrote a plaintive column explaining why I was stepping down from a prestigious, demanding managerial position at a major newspaper to become a columnist and spend more time with my family. It was, I realize now, my Anne-Marie Slaughter moment. I wasn’t as famous as she, and I…

  By Jane Eisner Jul 9, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Memories of Ben Gurion

  Yitzhak Shamir, former Prime Minister, unrepentant terrorist, fervent nationalist, is gone. Ironically, he may best be remembered as the person who caved before the pressure of President George H. W. Bush and Secretary of State James Baker and, however reluctantly, participated in an ice-breaking peace conference in Madrid in 1991. Madrid was the first time…

  By Leonard Fein Jul 8, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  The Freedom Argument

  Now that the U.S. Supreme Court drama over the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is over, it’s time to reflect on what seems to be the fundamental complaint about President Obama’s signature domestic program — its encroachment on individual freedom. Liberals may fulminate about the ruling’s hidden consequences, conservatives may fume over what they…

  Jul 8, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Israel and Russia Make Odd Couple

  Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Israel in late June with the ostensible purpose of helping to unveil a monument to the Soviet soldiers who helped defeat Nazi Germany. But Putin’s motivations for this trip to the Middle East were not so innocuous. In fact, they underlined the degree to which his ambitions for the region…

  By Robert O. Freedman Jul 6, 2012 | 4 min read
• Letters

  Inappropriate Linkage

  Contrary to Larry Lerner’s remarks, expressed in his June 29 op-ed, “Time for a New Jackson-Vanik,” the Magnitsky Act now under consideration is not the “modern-day version of Jackson-Vanik.” Organized American Jewry lobbied for Jackson-Vanik, and Congress adopted it in 1974 with full support and after consultation with Soviet Jews — the courageous refuseniks who…

  Jul 5, 2012 | 2 min read