Opinion

• Opinion

  Cancel Putin’s Visit

  It’s official. This summer, Russian president Vladimir Putin will be taking a trip to Israel, his first since 2005. It’s the consummation of a relationship that has been fostered by Israel’s Moldovan-born foreign minister, Avigdor Lieberman, who also recently described Israeli-Russian relations — after 20 years of diplomatic contact — as “very positive.” That may…

  3 min read
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  Opinion

  Barack Obama, Immersed in Jewish History

  President Barack Obama has been spending a lot of time recently with old Jewish documents. First, there he took a look at 150-year-old papers documenting the Jewish community’s appeal to President Abraham Lincoln. They hoped to get Lincoln to overturn an order by General Ulysses Grant to prevent Jews from serving in the military department…

  By Nathan Guttman Jun 13, 2012 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  My Way or the Highway

  If you say that the peace process, like the Wicked Witch, is not merely dead, but really most sincerely dead, no one will argue with you. Israel and the Palestinian Authority have not had a real negotiating session since September 2010, when so-called “talks” collapsed following a so-called settlement “freeze.” The last sign of life…

  By Kathleen Peratis Jun 13, 2012 | 3 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 Era of the So-Called Jewish Vote Is Over’

  A new survey of New York’s Jews out today suggests the advent of a much more politically conservative Jewish community that could shift the balance of local New York politics. The study, conducted by the UJA Federation of New York, knocks down old conceptions of what it means to be a New York Jew. The…

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

  The ‘Kosher Burrito’ Can Get Messy

  Latinos and Jews are increasingly seen as new partners within the American political story. And yet, the two communities are at very different points in their communal development. Latinos, who today comprise the largest minority community (16.3%) within the United States, with some 50 million residents, are described as a political force in ascendancy. In…

  By Steven Windmueller Jun 12, 2012 | 3 min read
• Opinion

  Hasidic Superstar Meets Lady Gaga — Must See

  Break-dancing Hasidic robots in metal yarmulkes. The anti-Internet rally meets Toy Story in a Lady Gaga video. Those seem to be the general concepts behind this new English/Yiddish music video by Hasidic pop superstar Lipa Schmeltzer, which you really need to watch. Schmeltzer, the biggest act in the Hasidic world, is a long way from…

  By Josh Nathan-Kazis Jun 11, 2012 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Reb Shmuley’s Candidacy Challenges Jewish Voters

  New Jersey Congressman Steve Rothman’s defeat in the Democratic primary on June 5 has presented the state’s 9th district Jewish voters with a choice, between a non-Jewish Democrat and his rival, a Jewish Republican. Democrats consider the district safe, meaning they do not feel it is in danger of falling into Republican hands and most…

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

  Free Is (Not) for Me

  To use a metaphor that young people will surely understand, one could say that the challenge of Jewish educators today is to ensure that the songs they make available will be ones Jews are willing to pay to download. In the music business, some downloads are offered for free because they exponentially increase audience size,…

  By David Bryfman Jun 11, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Republicans Have Become Party of ‘No’

  Last week, alert readers recall, we talked about the “silencing of the liberal American Jew,” the narrowing of the range of acceptable discussion in much of organized Jewish life. I hope you’ve all come prepared to continue our discussion this week. Pencils out, please. Our primary theme wasn’t the suppression of unpopular minority voices, however…

  By J.J. Goldberg Jun 10, 2012 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Separate Synagogue and State

  They didn’t exactly turn handsprings, but their cheering was unmistakable. “This is a historic day for Israelis and Jews around the world,” proclaimed Rabbi Julie Schonfeld, executive vice president of the Conservative Rabbinical Assembly. The head of Israel’s Reform movement, Rabbi Gilad Kariv, declared that the decision is “an important breakthrough in the effort to…

  By Leonard Fein Jun 10, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Is Adelson Poised To Donate $10 Million?

  Mystery solved? Yesterday, we asked whether you remembered billionaire Gingrich-backer Sheldon Adelson, whose future political giving plans were the matter of speculation in a Politico piece. Today, Politico has an unsourced report stating that Adelson has “talked about donating as much as $10 million to [pro-Romney super PAC] Restore Our Future.” That’s a pretty heavily…

  By Josh Nathan-Kazis Jun 8, 2012 | < 1 min read