Proposed Tax Law Would Hurt Graduate Students

By Zev Hurwitz December 6, 2017

Originally published in Ha’am. Paying for school might be a lot tougher for graduate students thanks to the “Tax Cuts and Jobs Act” (TCJA) making its way through Congress. The bill has come under fire by opponents for a plethora of issues, including projected increases in the number of uninsured Americans, nine-digit increases to the…

Read More...

This is not a Blog Post about Bibi

By Amram Altzman March 9, 2015

I am done with Bibi. I’m also done with Purim, which means that I’m even more done with the various editorials analyzing Bibi’s references to the Purim story in Congress. At its root, however, my frustration lies not with Bibi himself, but with the answer that we have given to the question: How should we,…

Read More...

Why Should we Care About Bibi’s Speech to Congress?

By Amram Altzman February 2, 2015

I’ve written before about my how my hesitance to involve myself in the Israeli political process stems from a larger phenomenon I’ve noticed of the increasing separation between Israeli Judaism (and Israeli-Jewish culture) and American Judaism. Yet, the controversy over Prime Minister Netanyahu’s planned congressional speech and the upcoming Israeli elections are extremely important to…

Read More...

Boycotts, Reform Rabbis, and Abortions – New Vices

By Derek M. Kwait January 10, 2014

MLA Hosts Panel on Boycotting Israel at Annual Conference The Modern Language Association will hold a panel called “Academic Boycotts: A Discussion of Israel and Palestine,” described as a discussion of “the political movement Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions against Israel, seen by its defenders as a viable means to end the Palestinian occupation,” according to…

Read More...

Let’s Talk About Here!

By Jonathan Katz September 25, 2013

Publications aimed for a queer Jewish audience, like any niche-aimed work, tend to concentrate on certain themes. There are your coming out to your community publications, there are your famous-queer-Jews publications, there are your “my story” publications. And then there is another trend: a deep, heavy, nearly-overwhelming concentration on Israel. Israel is everywhere in the…

Read More...

‘Companionship or Death’: Jewish Engagement With the Injustice of Solitary Confinement

By Rachel M. Cohen January 22, 2013

If community is a foundation of Jewish life, what does Judaism have to say about solitary confinement, the forcible separation of a person from the community? A few months ago I began an internship with Solitary Watch, an investigative news organization dedicated to reporting on solitary confinement. Once I got started, I became interested in…

Read More...

A Man Called Upendra Chivukula Goes to The JCC

By David A.M. Wilensky October 23, 2012

Sometimes contemporary American is terrifying. And sometimes it’s wonderful. I’ve just discovered that a man called Upendra Chivukula, born in Nellore, India, is running for the U.S. House of Representative in the New Jersey 7th Congressional District. On the home page of his website, one of the images in the rotating banner is this: You’ll…

Read More...

A Nazi Runs for Congress; Pro-Israel Advocates to help Iranian group; M.B.A in Social Media and more [Required Reading]

By pkessler March 1, 2012

Congressional Hopeful Denies Holocaust [Forward] Arthur Jones, a Lyons, Ill. insurance salesman, is seeking the Republican congressional nomination to run against Democratic incumbent Dan Lipinski for Illinois’s 3rd Congressional District this fall. His credentials include being an active member of the National Socialist Party, participating in their march on Chicago’s Marquette Park in 1978. Historic Chicago Synagogue…

Read More...

Torah and modern activism; don’t pray the gay away; and more. [Required Reading]

By John Propper February 27, 2012

Israel has more non-orthodox Jews than Haredim, study finds [Jewish Journal] A recent study demonstrates that Israel’s Conservative and Reform populations appear greater in number than that of its Haredim (ultra-orthodox), though not by much. Could this knowledge spell a shift in representation for an Israeli population that doesn’t seem to make as much political…

Read More...

Mr. Shmuley goes to Washington; Heeb turns 10; and more. [Required Reading]

By John Propper February 24, 2012

Joseph Goebbels takes on Heeb Magazine [Heeb] As Heeb Magazine celebrated its 10th anniversary of… well, being Heeb Magazine… with a crazy party, it seems the Jews aren’t the only ones paying attention. This little gem cropped up online yesterday, and we’re not sure, but we think it means Nazi Propaganda Minister Joseph Goebbels was…

Read More...