| August 20, 2010 |  The title of this essay might seem to be an academic exercise in political philosophy, but it is also – even especially – a serious conundrum of contemporary political reality. Indeed, it might be one of the central issues facing Israeli society today, given its situation in the i nter nat iona l political arena. As we all know, Israel has a vibrant democracy where freedom of speech (and the press) is almost complete. Yes, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) censor still can stop publication of highly sensitive material – and on extremely rare occasions actually does so – but in some respects Israelis of all stripes (including the minority Arab sector) have virtually unfettered free speech. This includes what some perceive to be incitement against the state, sedition, etc. Others would argue that, even if on occasion some do incite and spew forth hatred etc., it is preferable to have the alienated minority “causing a ruckus from within the tent” rather than being banished (speech-wise) from the Israeli media.
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| By Rev. Ethan Adler, Cranston | | August 20, 2010 | The article , “ADL downgrades swastika” (from the Aug. 6 issue of The Jewish Voice & Herald), was accompanied by a picture of a swastika which was an inappropriate inclusion, especially in a Jewish newspaper. | | Read more... |
| By Nancy Kirsch
| | August 20, 2010 |  Nancy KirschI have a confession to make: I dread the return to school. When I was young, I didn’t want to trade my endless and unstructured days at Lake Michigan’s beach or, later, for the activity-filled weeks of camp in Wisconsin for the rigor and routine of school.
Even with days off early in the school year for the Jewish holidays, Columbus Day and Thanksgiving, the beginning of the school year was only slightly more tolerable than, say, the period from January through March, when we slogged through week after week without even a day or two of school vacation.
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| | By Rabbi James Rosenberg | | August 20, 2010 | I suspect that by now most readers of The Jewish Voice & Herald are aware of the controversy swirling about Manhattan’s  Rabbi James Rosenberg“Ground Zero Mosque.” The specifics of the case are that the American Society for Muslim Advancement, along with the Cordoba Institute, is planning to build a 13-story Islamic cultural center and mosque at a cost of $100 million, two blocks north of Ground Zero.
Some time ago, the local community board overwhelming approved the project and, on Aug. 3, the city’s Landmarks Preservation Commission gave its go-ahead by a vote of 9-0. New York’s Mayor Michael Bloomberg has been supportive of the mosque and cultural center from its inception.
The Ground Zero Mosque, to no one’s surprise, has generated a storm of criticism. | | Read more... |
| By Grace Novick, Providence | | August 20, 2010 | Nina Tannenwald ’s Aug. 6 letter to the editor, “Efrat – and Stieglitz – are in the West Bank,” reflects the letter-writer’s ideology, not accuracy. When you make aliyah, you become a citizen of Israel. Dani Stieglitz became an Israeli citizen and happens to live in Efrat, which is essentially a bedroom suburb of Jerusalem. | | Read more... |
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