Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
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Liberals are saying Trump Education nominee Betsy DeVos “wants to take money away from public schools” by helping parents use taxpayer dollars for religious and other schools. But under the current system, the government unfairly forces many parents to choose between an expensive religious education and a free education that stymies their religious observance. Since practicing one’s religion without government interference is a constitutional guarantee, America’s public school regime is unconstitutional, and should be upended by the coming... Full story
A constant drumbeat of sharp headlines has heralded former Breitbart executive Steve Bannon, president-elect Donald Trump’s chief strategist, as an open anti-Semite. The attack is rooted in nothing more credible than an unverified accusation by a crusading left-wing journalist, namely that Bannon had “proudly” told her five weeks earlier, “We’re the platform for the alt-right.” To be fair, though, critics have amply demonstrated that during Bannon’s tenure Breitbart harbored some pretty noxious ideas—reflected in click-bait headlines, infl... Full story
Americans who opposed Donald Trump have awoken in a stupor, shocked that his victory was no mere nightmare. For those who cannot envision living under a Trump regime, “I’m moving to Canada” or elsewhere no longer feels like election-year blather. But where would you go? If five million Americans, alarmed by a reckless, ruthless chief executive, decided to move north tomorrow, Canada would not have the desire—or the ability—to absorb them. No country in the world would absorb that magnitude of American expats. Well, there is one country.... Full story
Last month, Barbra Streisand announced to great fanfare that if Donald Trump wins the presidential election, she’ll move to Canada or Australia. Threatening to emigrate, usually to Canada, if the Republican candidate wins is a quadrennial threat among liberals—both celebrity and not—who want to express their horror at a Democratic loss in November. But it pains me when the one voicing the threat—whether Streisand, Lena Dunham, or one of my Facebook friends—is an American Jew. Because Jews already have a home ready to welcome them if they no l... Full story
Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) head Matthew Brooks recently told The Hill, “We as a Jewish community have to take a long, hard step back and acknowledge the reality ... that today there is one pro-Israel party and that is the Republican Party.” What a boneheaded thing to say—both because it isn’t true, and because it’s a sure-fire way to hurt Israel. (Full disclosure: I’m a proud RJC member.) Let’s look at some of the ways we know the Democrats continue to support Israel: • In a survey last December nearly three times as many Democrats... Full story
Last month, the Iranian mission at the United Nations wrote the International Atomic Energy Agency an “explanatory note” protesting resolutions by the organization had questioned Iran’s nuclear aims. The document asserts that “nuclear material in Iran has never been diverted from peaceful purposes.” In fact, it uses the word “peaceful” 11 times. It’s time to call Iran’s bluff that their nuclear program exists only to provide for its people’s electrical needs. We should calculate Iran’s annual savings from its nuclear power plants, and off... Full story
Last Friday, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach began an advertising campaign to defend the State of Israel by arguing that Hamas and ISIS are equally vile. According to his press release, “The ad equates ISIS and its execution of American journalist James Foley and Hamas’ actions in Gaza.” Not only is the opinion of “America’s Rabbi” wrong, it is dangerous. Let me be clear: I believe Hamas is an existential danger to the State of Israel, and I denounce that bellicose terrorist regime vigorously. I was a strong supporter of our recent efforts in Gaza, wh... Full story
The newest nonsense from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) is its declaration of victory in convincing the Metropolitan Opera to cancel plans for a worldwide simulcast of its production of the American opera The Death of Klinghoffer. Under the terms of the ADL’s compromise with the Met, the show will only be seen by those few who happen to be in New York for the live version and can pay hundreds of dollars per ticket. ADL director Abe Foxman acknowledged that the work, which deals with terrorism, the murder of a Jewish cruise passenger, and t... Full story
In mid-December, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) sharply condemned a board member of the National Rifle Association (NRA) for comparing gun restrictions in America to those in Nazi Germany. That’s par for the course for the group, which appears to have a strict policy of battling any analogy that invokes Nazi Germany as offensive to the memory of the Holocaust. But Nazi Germany isn’t the same thing as the Holocaust—in fact, the Jewish community should constantly look for signs that evoke aspects of the pre-Holocaust era so we can speak out b... Full story
The intensifying Israeli-Palestinian peace negotiations have caused opponents of a Palestinian state to revive former Israeli Prime Minister Golda Meir’s 1969 canard that “there is no such thing as a Palestinian people.” However, “Palestine Denial” is less a debating point than a conversation-stopper: if there are no Palestinians, then there is no Palestinian-Israeli conflict, and thus no need even to discuss West Bank policies. One problem: Palestinians do, in fact, exist. Last month, Israeli diplomat Danny Ayalon posted a YouTube video ent... Full story
One hundred years ago, Southern Jew Leo Frank sat in jail, a year after his conviction of murdering a 13-year-old girl and a year before his lynching. To American Jews familiar with the case over the last century, Frank’s slaying has exemplified America’s anti-Semitism. But the Frank affair has received so much attention precisely because of its rarity. Jews have been quite fortunate in America, facing less prejudice than other minorities, and certainly less than they suffered elsewhere. In 1913, the 29-year-old Frank ran a pencil factory in an... Full story
