As has been throughout history, when the economic times become bleak, fingers start pointing toward the Jewish people.
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By Juda Engelmayer
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8/16/12
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There probably is no better known statement that reveals racism in America than the phrase that begins, “Some of my best friends are …,” with the blank filled in with “Jews,” “blacks,” or some other such qualifier. It reeks of a closet bigot’s desperate attempt to backpedal on a comment or position regarding the inserted group that exposes him for what he really is.
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By Juda Engelmayer
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8/9/12
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It was just about two weeks ago that we woke to news stories on radio and television about anti-Israel ads that were posted in train stations along commuter routes to New York City. In a slow news week, many news stations covered the “outrage” over what the Anti-Defamation League referred to as the “deliberately misleading and biased” messages that graphically demonstrated how Israel has been consuming “Palestine” since 1948. These ads were the work of a wealthy ex-Wall Street financier, Henry Clifford, who is now the chairman of The Committee for Peace in Israel and Palestine.
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By Juda Engelmayer
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7/26/12
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In about a week from now, the world will tune in to watch the opening ceremonies of the London Olympic Games. With all of the fanfare it deserves, this event brings together most of the world in harmony unseen in almost every other part of international relations. In principle, the Olympics were founded with the goal of placing “sport at the service of the harmonious development of man, with a view to promoting a peaceful society concerned with the preservation of human dignity.”
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By Juda Engelmayer
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7/19/12
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On July 3, Iran claimed to have successfully tested missiles capable of hitting Israel. At the same time, Israel said that it could strike Iran if the efforts at diplomacy fail to stop it from developing nuclear weapons capabilities. Calling it the “Great Prophet 7” missile exercise, Iran launched its test on Sunday after the European embargo against Iranian oil went into effect. In invoking the name of the Prophet Muhammad for their missile test, there should be no questions to anyone, including President Obama, that the Iranian leadership are extremists, and seemingly willing to head into a devastating war to impose what it interprets to be the will of God and prophet. Neither money, nor sanctions can alter divine will, and that is what those who tread lightly with Iran seem to miss.
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Is it just me or is there indeed more discord within the Jewish community now than in the past? We proclaim with fervor “Kol Yisrael arevim zeh la-zeh,” that every Jewish soul is responsible for every other. Yet it seems as if we are facing more internal challenges than ever before; bitter rivalries that could make instances of persecution by gentiles seem as mere playground brawls.
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By Juda Engelmayer
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6/28/12
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On June 16-17 Egyptians will cast ballots in a runoff election that will decide between the Muslim Brotherhood’s candidate Mohamed Mursi and former Prime Minister Ahmed Shafiq, who served under former president Hosni Mubarak.
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By Juda Engelmayer
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6/14/12
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Do social issues make Jewish voters migrate to one side of an aisle or another, or do the issues effecting Israel make Jews go out and vote? The term, “the Jewish vote,” is often referred to by media or even talked about by political campaign strategists with an air of certainty, but when it is actually analyzed, there is no clear picture of the voting patterns of Jews as a single block. There are so many factors that go into individual Jewish community voting patterns; it often causes more confusion for those trying to understand just what issues will move a Jewish electorate.
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Juda Engelmayer
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6/7/12
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I find the vitriol directed against the Citifield asifa not only to be unfounded but downright offensive. Yes, the internet is an inescapable part of our modern world, but to be inattentive to the enormous dangers that lurk in this medium is naive and foolhardy.
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This Sunday, New York will celebrate 64 years since Israel declared its independence by hosting what has become an institution for 48 years. The largest gathering of Jews outside of Israel to commemorate and celebrate the forming of the Jewish State is the Israel Day Parade which has in the past been arranged by the Israel Tribute Committee with respect and dignity.
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By Juda Engelmayer
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5/31/12
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