Opinion

• Opinion

  Free Speech Movement Hits Back

  A group of California free speech advocates is urging University of California President Mark Yudof to reject a proposal to ban hate speech at UC campuses, saying that it runs counter to the spirit of the free speech movement, which started at Berkeley in the 1960s. “We hereby remind the university of its stand affirming…

  By Naomi Zeveloff

  < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Religious Freedom for Israelis, Too

  I am the son of a Yekke. My father was born in Germany. His parents escaped to Palestine in the nick of time, just before World War II broke out. Both were doctors, but they came with no Hebrew and there was no work for them. It was tough. They may have left Germany behind…

  By Yizhar Hess Aug 8, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  Mitt Romney Attacks….the Kibbutz

  Maybe Mitt Romney didn’t know what he was talking about when he praised Israeli culture. The Republican presidential hopeful controversially explained during a trip to Israel last week that the country’s economic success was due to its culture. Now it turns out he’s no fan of the kibbutz. “America is not a collective where we…

  By Josh Nathan-Kazis Aug 7, 2012 | < 1 min read

Columnists View All

• Alyssa Katz Class assignment: Get to know your murdered Jewish neighbors

  

• Rob Eshman Liberal Zionists are under attack. A new book proves their work has never been more important

  

• Dan Perry Israel’s most dangerous war is with itself

  

• Emily Tamkin American Jews have a Hasan Piker problem. Solving it is going to hurt

  

• Jay Michaelson Epstein and Iran are an antisemitism mega-crisis. Here’s what Jewish organizations should do about it. 

  

The Latest

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  Opinion

  We’re Nobody’s ‘Jew-Washing’ Pawns

  In his latest column, Philologos correctly parses the linguistic problems with Yitzhak Santis and Gerald M. Steinberg’s invented term, “Jew-washing.” His political analysis, alas, fails miserably. Philologos has it completely wrong when he speaks of the “anti-Semitism in boycotts of Israel.” To begin with, Santis and Steinberg did not use the term “Jew-washing” in reference…

  By Alissa Wise and Brant Rosen Aug 7, 2012 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  Strange Way To Express Sympathy With Sikhs (Update)

  UPDATE: JFNA defends reference to Homeland Security grant program The Jewish Federations of North America chose an odd way to offer condolences to the Sikh community over the weekend shooting rampage that killed six people at a temple in Wisconsin. After offering its “deepest sympathy” to the victims, the JFNA claimed the mass shooting spotlights…

  By Josh Nathan-Kazis Aug 6, 2012 | 2 min read
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  Opinion

  The Passing of Sami Rohr

  I just learned of the death yesterday of Sami Rohr, the businessman and philanthropist powerhouse behind the growth of Chabad around the world. He was also the namesake of an incredible literary prize that his children endowed in his name on his 80th birthday and that I was so grateful to receive this past year….

  By Gal Beckerman Aug 6, 2012 | 3 min read
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  Opinion

  5 Jewish Things About Sarah Palin’s State

  From Wyatt Earp to Sarah Palin, Alaska has a colorful history, which has occasionally touched on Jews. Four of the state’s legendary mountains are named after Jews. There’s a Star of David featured in one of the state’s most famed church stained-glass windows. Alaska Airlines helped airlift Yemeni Jews to Israel. Earp once ran a…

  By Naomi Zeveloff Aug 6, 2012 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  Converts’ Permanent Revolution

  I teach my classes at Seton Hall University in a seminar room known as the Oesterreicher Suite, in which a photograph of Monsignor John M. Oesterreicher looks down on the class as it is being held. The room itself is comprised of glass cases with speeches and documents that track and illustrate the Monsignor’s path…

  By Alan Brill Aug 6, 2012 | 4 min read
• Opinion

  A Prayer for the Suicidal

  The Golden Gate Bridge is approaching its 75th anniversary. Along with being a wondrous Bay Area landmark, the span is famous as a spot where hundreds have committed suicide over the decades. Congregation Sha’ar Zahav of San Francisco is out to remove the stigma of suicide from religious life. The followinig is a kaddish text,…

  By Simi Lampert Aug 5, 2012 | < 1 min read
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  Opinion

  France’s Jewish Archbishop

  In the United States, no one born abroad can grow up and become president. In France, any citizen can grow up and become president, or archbishop of Paris — even the son of Jewish immigrants from Poland. August 5 marks the fifth anniversary of the death of Cardinal Jean-Marie Lustiger. With his passing, France lost…

  By Robert Zaretsky Aug 5, 2012 | 4 min read
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  Opinion

  Of Grease Monkeys and Birthers

  It happened in the body shop. With trepidation, I’d delivered my badly wounded car, (more exactly, the tow truck had), and now, while waiting for my rental car to be delivered, I was chatting with the owner of the body shop, a very well-spoken man on whose mercy I now depended and whose expertise was…

  By Leonard Fein Aug 4, 2012 | 3 min read