Israel
Qatar’s GameTuesday, February 8, 2011 by Elliot Jager | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
On the map of the Middle East, it is easy to overlook the peninsular state of Qatar, bordering Saudi Arabia and jutting into the Persian Gulf opposite Iran. Yet, as the dominant exporter of liquefied natural gas, it is one of the world's wealthiest countries. Nor is it easy to pigeonhole.
Who is Uri Avnery, and Why Does He Matter?Friday, February 4, 2011 by Aryeh Tepper | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
Jerusalem's decision in the early 1990's to admit Yasir Arafat and his fellow thugs into the heart of the land of Israel proved to be one of the country's major political blunders, paid for in the coin of a five-year terror war that traumatized Israeli society and transformed the dream of Israeli-Palestinian peace into an extended nightmare. How did it happen?
Calling David Ben-GurionThursday, February 3, 2011 by Yehudah Mirsky | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
Times like these tend to remind us what a rare thing is great statesmanship. How many leaders are capable of wedding long-term vision with the nuts and bolts of politics and institutions, let alone an understanding of great historical forces with the will to shape them and the wisdom to know the will's limits?
Frail Reeds?Wednesday, February 2, 2011 by Elliot Jager | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
Observing Egypt's current upheaval, a writer for the Hebrew daily Makor Rishon has ventured the thought that whatever happens there, and no matter who takes power, "the lesson for Israel is clear: Arab regimes cannot be trusted."
The Seed of IsraelWednesday, January 26, 2011 by Aryeh Tepper | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
Until modern times, the boundaries of Jewish identity were cut and dried. If you were born to a Jewish mother, or if you were a convert according to Jewish religious law (halakhah), you were Jewish. If not, you weren't.
Is Israeli Democracy Finished?Tuesday, January 25, 2011 by Benjamin Kerstein | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
In a now somewhat notorious story published on January 11, Time magazine announced that Israeli politics was taking an ominous "rightward lurch," and concluded that the Middle East's only democracy is on the slippery slope toward something like . . . fascism.
A Zionist Who’s WhoThursday, January 20, 2011 by Yehudah Mirsky | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
The state of Israel, like the Zionist movement in all its forms—political, cultural, artistic, religious—was an astounding collective creation. The famous names are known, as are the slightly less famous. But what about all the others?
From New Year to Arbor DayWednesday, January 19, 2011 by Moshe Sokolow | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
The holiday of Tu Bishvat ("the fifteenth of Shvat") falls this year on Thursday, January 20. What are its origins, and when and why did it become incorporated into the calendar as the Jewish "Arbor Day"?
The Hamas-Fatah Two-StepFriday, January 14, 2011 by Elliot Jager | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
Frustrated by the diplomatic deadlock over negotiations with the Palestinians, many Westerners, and some Israelis themselves, have focused on the need to accommodate the demands of Mahmoud Abbas and his Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority (PA).
Press Freedom, Israeli-StyleTuesday, January 11, 2011 by Elliot Jager | Jewish Ideas Daily » Daily Features
If, as Walter Lippmann wrote, the newspaper is the bible of democracy, the land of the Bible is exceptionally well endowed with that precious commodity.
Editors' Picks
Slow-Down Nation? Ben Sales, Times of Israel. It’s not as easy as it once was for Israeli start-ups to get venture capital. Will the country’s high-tech industry decline—or learn to do more with less?
Nu Students Dudi Goldman, Al-Monitor. “Yiddish intrigues me with its majesty,” says an Israeli Arab studying at Bar Ilan University—where Arabs make up a quarter of the students in the Yiddish program.
The Jewish State Colin Shindler, Jewish Chronicle. Although the Israeli Right now demands that the Palestinians recognize Israel as the Jewish state, Likudniks of the past were prepared to be more flexible if peace was at stake.
Roots Richard Elliott Friedman, Huffington Post. Ahmadinejad’s latest denial of Israel’s historical roots should serve to remind us of how much archeologists have discovered about ancient Israelite culture.
Settling for Peace Khaled Diab, Guardian. "I and you, Hakham Froman, can make peace in five minutes, because both of us are religious."
Mossad’s Mistake Mitch Ginsburg, Times of Israel. The attack that began the Yom Kippur War caught everyone in Israel, including Golda Meir, by surprise—everyone except the Mossad. A new look at Israel’s Pearl Harbor.
Noam Gershony’s Incredible Gold Marcus Dysch, Jewish Chronicle. The Israeli war hero lost the use of his legs in a helicopter crash in the 2006 Lebanon War. At this year’s Paralympics, he became a hero again.
Poet of the Palmach Sigal Arbitman, Eran Swissa, Yehuda Shlezinger, Israel Hayom. Haim Hefer wrote songs that built Israel’s character and gained the status of national anthems. He died on Rosh Hashana at age 86.
The Case For Netanyahu Melanie Phillips, Daily Mail. Israel’s Prime Minister, faced with an impending nuclear Iran, was right to go over the heads of the administration with a public rebuke meant for the ears of the American people.
What Happens in Uman Stays in Uman Cnaan Liphshiz, Times of Israel. The Breslovers, who have gained adherents in Israel’s prisons, converge on Uman each Rosh Hashanah—and engage in some less-than-religious behavior. Just ask the visiting sex workers.