archive

Changes in Israeli society

From The Tablet, would Israel launch a preemptive strike — despite U.S. opposition — to prevent an Iranian bomb? Despite its bluster, probably not. Lost Jewish tribe found in Zimbabwe: The Lemba people of Zimbabwe and South Africa may look like their compatriots, but they follow a very different set of customs and traditions. The Unwelcome Mat: Today's rabbinic culture is closing the door to converts, and ignoring its own history in the process. A review of Moses Montefiore: Jewish Liberator, Imperial Hero by Abigail Green (and more). An interview with Steven Katz on books on the Holocaust. From Slate, that's no way to run a blockade: Fred Kaplan on how Israel botched what should have been a straightforward military operation; and what's to investigate? We know what happened to the Gaza flotilla. A review of The Mystical Origins of Hasidism by Rachel Elior. Thanks to a history of scarcity in a hostile region, Israel is poised to lead the world in clean technology. A review of The Unspoken Alliance: Israel’s Secret Relationship With Apartheid South Africa by Sasha Polakow-Suransky (and more and more and more). Middle East Plan B: It's time to consider alternative paths to peace. From Forward, an article on the kibbutz at 100: Reflecting changes in Israeli society; and this is Theodor Herzl’s Judaism: An inclusive religious tradition separated from the state, imbued with Western liberal values and combining the old with the new, offering inspiration once again to the world. Why won't Israel admit it has nukes? Linked In: Why do Arab governments — and the US — insist the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is at the heart of all the Mideast’s problems? Good Samaritans: Israel's smallest religious minority offers Jews a glimpse of what might have been. Lawrence Davidson on the present state of anti-Semitism.