By Ben Cohen (JNS) Even before the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar kicked off, the tournament already had a hero: the former captain of the Iranian national team, Ali Daei. Now retired and working as a coach, Daei is without question the greatest footballer Iran has ever produced, playing at senior level both in
Qatar’s Farcical World Cup Begins Read More »
International, Israel, Middle East, Opinion
By Alex Gordon HAIFA, Israel — In 1922, Hugo Bettauer, an Austrian writer of Jewish origin, published a satirical anti-utopia, the novel The City Without Jews. The book was published 47 times in seven languages. The author wrote: “The people have chosen a political savior, Dr. Karl Schwertfeger of the Christian Social Party.” The writer
The City Without Jews Read More »
Alex Gordon, Books, Poetry & Short Stories, International, Opinion
By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — These days I feel like Alice in Anti-Wonderland, where what seemed impossible yesterday is now happening before my very eyes. I would say “Curiouser and Curiouser” if I could, but I feel more like saying “Awfuller and Awfuller.” Each candidate for a ministerial post in the government
Should Israelis Laugh or Cry? Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Opinion
By Bruce S. Ticker PHILADELPHIA — Jared Polis, Joshua Shapiro and Lee Zeldin ended the day, on Tuesday, Nov. 8, able to claim vast political accomplishments. All three can be credited with consolidating or augmenting power in their states for their respective political parties. Polis won re-election as governor of Colorado, Shapiro was elected to
Road to the Jewish White House Read More »
Bruce Ticker, Opinion, USA
By Rebecca Sugar (JNS) I missed comedian Dave Chappelle’s opening monologue on “Saturday Night Live” last weekend, but I knew I had to watch it when the wave of social media outrage reached me. When I finally saw it, what I heard shocked me. Chappelle’s jokes about the Kanye West and Kyrie Irving controversies were
Dave Chappelle Was More Than Just Funny, He Was Right Read More »
Opinion, USA
By Jonathan S. Tobin (JNS) You have to live in a bubble of New York Times readers and NPR listeners to think that what happens on “Saturday Night Live” is of earth-shattering importance. But the controversy about what guest host comedian Dave Chappelle said about recent antisemitic controversies involving African-Americans during the course of his
Dave Chappelle and Normalizing Black Antisemitism Read More »
Opinion, USA
By Ira Sharkansky, Ph.D JERUSALEM — The U.S. election results are not final, but a lot closer than projected in pre-election polls. The combination of a Supreme Court decision about abortion and Donald Trump’s prominence provided enough threats to limit the usual non-presidential party’s tendency to lose in mid-term elections. The projected “red wave” turned
‘Red Wave’ Turns Into a Ripple; Coalition Process Underway in Israel Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Israel, Middle East, Opinion, USABy Bruce S. Ticker PHILADELPHIA — No question that American Jews should be anxious about the future of an Israel in Benjamin Netanyahu’s hands. There will likely be two prime forces at work that can intensify the conflict with the Palestinians. We already know that Bibi (Netanyahu) plans to govern with an alliance joined by
Two Perilous Forces in Israel Read More »
Bruce Ticker, Israel, Middle East, Opinion, USABy Alex Gordon HAIFA, Israel — In political statements and commentary, the expression “on the right side of history” often appears. The politician or commentator puts his worldview and his actions “on the right side of history,” and his opponent’s opinions and policies on its ” wrong side.” Often statements about the right side of
On the Right Side of History Read More »
Alex Gordon, International, Israel, Opinion
By Steve Kramer KFAR SABA, Israel — Judaism vs. democracy in the State of Israel, is a subject that many American Jews have been arguing for decades. I don’t get it. Could a country that has had five elections in less than four years, in which 71% of eligible voters cast ballots, be anything other
Judaism vs. Capitulation Read More »
Israel, Opinion, Steve Kramer
By Dorothea Shefer-Vanson MEVASSERET ZION, Israel — Israel’s fifth general election in four years has just taken place, and the decision appears to be clear. Israel has moved to the right. The parties which espouse limiting the rule of law as delineated by the country’s founding fathers, as well as the practice of restricting fiscal
What Lies Ahead in Israel Read More »
Dorothea Shefer-Vanson, Israel, Middle East, OpinionBy Alex Gordon HAIFA, Israel — The assassination in Sarajevo of the heir to the Austro-Hungarian Habsburg throne, Archduke Franz Ferdinand, was the most important political assassination of the twentieth century, for it was the trigger for World War I. However, this assassination, committed in 1914, was not the only resounding political assassination in the
The Red Terror of the Pacifist Read More »
Alex Gordon, International, Jewish History, OpinionBy Bruce S. Ticker PHILADELPHIA — We should thank Donald J. Trump for helping Israel, but he has done far more for Jews there than he has ever done for most American Jews. In the process, his recent pronouncements have reopened the question of dual loyalty – that Jews here must ignore the everyday needs
Trump’s advice for ‘a good Jewish character’ Read More »
Bruce Ticker, Israel, Opinion, USABy Ira Sharkansky, Ph.D JERUSALEM — The world seems to be in a mess. Where to start? Israel’s election is in a bit more than a week. The parties are maneuvering. We aren’t sure who’s going to be aligned with who? And will there be enough to assure that Benjamin Netanyahu (Bibi) is not our
The World is a Mess as Israel’s Election Approaches Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Israel, Middle East, Opinion, USA