Monthly Archives: April 2007
Six ‘Rabbis’ for May Day
On we go with our list of “rabbis” for the secular and progressive-minded. May 1 being international labor day, it’s time to roll out some of my favorite Jewish lefties: 3. Joe Slovo When Joe Slovo died, the Central Committee … Continue reading
Why the U.S. Can’t Leave Iraq
The debate in Washington over troop withdrawals from Iraq is largely a pantomime for domestic political consumption — the Democrats are maneuvering to disassociate themselves from an unpopular war that a majority of their senators originally backed, and that they … Continue reading
Three ‘Rabbis’ for Israel’s Independence Day
Continuing my series on the 50 “rabbis” (teachers) who most influenced my understanding of being Jewish in the world, I offer up three more to coincide with Israel’s Independence Day . 9. Avraham Burg Former Knesset Speaker Avraham Burg was … Continue reading
Aux Armes, Etcetera…
Listen to Lillian Thuram Looking at the political choices facing voters in France, today, I’m glad I’m not French — although I guess I would be if the Catholic Church hadn’t driven France’s Jews out in the 14th century, starting … Continue reading
Rabbi Rollout #2: Amira Hass
By way of further preview to my personal “50 Most Influential Rabbis” (i.e. people who taught me something about being Jewish in the world), following Sunday’s salute to Primo Levi, it is timely to introduce Amira Hass, if only because … Continue reading
Salute Primo Levi, My Favorite Rabbi
I’ve been slowly at work, for weeks now, on a project spawned by Newsweek’s decision idiotic to publicize a rather silly list of America’s 50 most influential rabbis according to a couple of corporate executive types. (Sorry, Gary, but it’s … Continue reading
There’s hostages, and there’s hostages
The Iran-Britain standoff looks to be over with Iran’s announcement that it will send the 15 captive Britons home. And it’s not surprising that Tehran is claiming victory: It has used the incident to sound a warning to the U.S. … Continue reading