McDonald’s Comes to Masada
Image by iStockphoto
Would you like fries with that mass suicide?
Visitors to Masada can now ponder Jewish martyrdom while eating fast food, thanks to the recent opening of a McDonald’s at the historical site. The latest issue of Time Out Tel Aviv reports that the fast-food chain “just opened a branch inside the visitors center of the sombre ruined fortress,” where a besieged group of Jews killed themselves “rather than face a life of slavery at the hands of their Roman captors.”
Time Out notes a certain irony in the arrival of McDonald’s, long derided by critics as an example of American “cultural imperialism.” Masada has come to symbolize “the refusal to bow down to the evil imperialist,” the magazine says, but is “now home to a branch of everyone’s favorite burger chain.” Some other Israelis have agreed, including one who says the new McDonald’s “shows that the forces of global capitalism are taking the fight to the heart of the Zionist narrative.”
That said, the magazine sees some potential in the new McDonald’s outlet, even if most visitors won’t acknowledge it.
“We bet that, even if you won’t admit it, a nice, cold milkshake at the end of a sightseeing trip might end up being a welcome affair,” Time Out suggests.
The Forward is free to read, but it isn’t free to produce
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and polarized discourse.
This is a great time to support independent Jewish journalism you rely on. Make a gift today!
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Dive In
Most Popular
- 1
Opinion The dangerous Nazi legend behind Trump’s ruthless grab for power
- 2
Opinion A Holocaust perpetrator was just celebrated on US soil. I think I know why no one objected.
- 3
Culture Did this Jewish literary titan have the right idea about Harry Potter and J.K. Rowling after all?
- 4
Opinion I first met Netanyahu in 1988. Here’s how he became the most destructive leader in Israel’s history.
In Case You Missed It
-
Culture I have seen the future of America — in a pastrami sandwich in Queens
-
Culture Trump wants to honor Hannah Arendt in a ‘Garden of American Heroes.’ Is this a joke?
-
Opinion Gaza and Trump have left the Jewish community at war with itself — and me with a bad case of alienation
-
Fast Forward Trump administration restores student visas, but impact on pro-Palestinian protesters is unclear
-
Shop the Forward Store
100% of profits support our journalism
Republish This Story
Please read before republishing
We’re happy to make this story available to republish for free, unless it originated with JTA, Haaretz or another publication (as indicated on the article) and as long as you follow our guidelines.
You must comply with the following:
- Credit the Forward
- Retain our pixel
- Preserve our canonical link in Google search
- Add a noindex tag in Google search
See our full guidelines for more information, and this guide for detail about canonical URLs.
To republish, copy the HTML by clicking on the yellow button to the right; it includes our tracking pixel, all paragraph styles and hyperlinks, the author byline and credit to the Forward. It does not include images; to avoid copyright violations, you must add them manually, following our guidelines. Please email us at [email protected], subject line “republish,” with any questions or to let us know what stories you’re picking up.