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May 13, 2013

Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Why the giving of the document that would permanently change the world could only be done in desolation

David G. Savage: Church-state, literally? Supreme Court weighing public school graduation in a church

Emily Alpert: Recession dragged down birth rates for less-educated women
Morgan Housel: The deep downside of home ownership

Peter Teffer: Will Dutch police soon be stalking cybercriminals on your computer?

Heidi McIndoo, M.S., R.D.: Meatless 'meat' can have its own set of problems

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: Celebrate! This must-try appetizer is delicate yet has depth of flavor: Corn-Leek Cakes with Caviar, Smoked Salmon and Creme Fraiche

May 10, 2013

Rabbi Berel Wein: Be all that you should be

Caroline B. Glick: The dirty little secret about Israel's Arabs

Mona Charen: Hawking's Moral Calculus: The man and the movement he embraces
Morgan Housel: The biggest retirement myth ever told

Sandi Doughton: Eyes may provide new insight into brain problems

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : The Great Gatsby's Jewish Ties; Jews in the "Time 100 list" List; People's Most Beautiful Women

The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: A sweet-hot meal: Pear salsa spices up salmon

May 8, 2013

Peter Ford: Why China is welcoming both Israel's Netanyahu and Palestinians' Abbas

Warren Richey: Obama administration quietly backs out of appeal over new contraceptive mandate

Fred Weir: At Kerry-Putin meeting, US-Russia relations thaw --- a tad
Amanda Paulson: Study reveals sad truths about community colleges

Harvard Health Letters: Evidence weak that zinc, echinacea are beneficial

The Kosher Gourmet by Leela Cyd Ross : Almost too pretty to eat, this colorful salad with Sicilian inspiration will tickle the taste buds and delight your visual sensibility

May 6, 2013

Edmund Sanders and Patrick J. McDonnell: Think Israel's objective in Syria is to weaken Assad or embolden the rebels? Think again

Brian Bennett: Israeli airstrikes may show weakness in Syrian defense

Michael Ollove: Millions of ex-felons, parolees and those on probation are about to be entitled to tax-payer paid health coverage
Karen Kaplan: Most men can skip PSA test for prostate cancer, urologists say

Kimberly Lankford: How to track down a lost life insurance policy

Dream of Mars exploration achievable, experts say

The Kosher Gourmet by Susan M. Selasky: EGGPLANT WRAPS are an easy, sumptuous and scrumptious meal

May 3, 2013

Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Human Courage and the Unavoidable, Disturbing Text

Steven Emerson: Attorney General Fights CAIR in Court, Lauds it in Public

Mediterranean diet helps beat dementia: study
Harvard Health Letters: When to be screened for a hearing problem

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Iron Man's Jewish Connections; Marc Maron's New TV Show; Martin Landau Grows Up with Israel; Shalom, Allan Arbus

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: A sweet surprise for Mother's Day dessert

May 1, 2013

Jonathan Rosenblum: An Improbable Journey to Orthodoxy

Jonathan Tobin: Blame Obama, Not Israel for Syria Push

Kids, kittens the Same? With employee perks at struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo! it's hard to tell
Halena M. Gazelka, M.D.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: What you need to know about implanted pain relief devices

Sandy Kleffman: Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine

Jessica Shugart: When it comes to math, MRIs may be better than IQs

The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: The celebrated chef on how high-maintenance ASPARAGUS RISOTTO need not be

April 29, 2013

Roy Gutman: Poland's new Jewish museum celebrates life, doesn't revisit Holocaust

Mark Clayton: Terrorism in America: Is US missing a chance to learn from failed plots?

Kim Murphy: Boston Bomber's 'Svengali' Revealed
Morgan Housel: He's rich, smart and old: Listen to him

Thomas Salinas, D.D.S.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: The safety of amalgam fillings

Harvard Health Letters: Tomatoes and stroke protection

Pete Spotts: Tiny satellites + cellphones = cheaper 'eyes in the sky' for NASA

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: Swing into spring with lemon cream pie

April 26, 2013

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: The world is a mirror

Caroline B. Glick: Time to confront Obama

Clifford D. May: Defense in the Age of Jihadist Terrorism
Kimberly Lankford: New strategies ease pain of paying for long-term care insurance

Howard LeWine, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Too much ibuprofen?

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: How to feel your best -- with plenty of energy, a healthy weight and optimal mental and physical function -- without driving yourself batty

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Jewish Major Leaguers, 2013; New Movies and Comedy Show; Shalom, 'Lumpy' (Leave it to Beaver)

The Kosher Gourmet by Emily Ho : A bright and cheerful salad to herald the warmer months ahead

April 24, 2013

Steven Emerson: Boston Bomber Exposes Islamist Secret

Morgan Housel Admit it: No one has any idea what's going on
Harvard Health Letters: Can you get headaches from headache medication?

Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D.: How to easily get more Omega-3s in your diet

Melissa Healy: Pot in a pill: All the pain relief without the smoke

The Kosher Gourmet by Susan Russo: Chipotle Chili Butternut Squash Soup is bold, zesty, hot

April 22, 2013

Ken Dilanian: Counterterrorism's future is unclear

US man departing country arrested on terror charges
Barbara Williams: An unorthodox but growing treatment in a 9-year-old's battle against cancer

P.J. Skerrett, M.D.: How to recognize a good whole grain product

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Teen actor Jonah Bobo in New Flick: Hunky James Wolk on Mad Men; Erich Segal's Daughter Writes Prize-Winning Jewish Novel

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: 'Noodles,' Asian style is a carb sub, sure. But they are also amazingly delicious and colorful

April 19, 2013

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: When violence seems the only answer

Caroline B. Glick: Why Obama's visit to Israel had no impact on public opinion or government policy

Morgan Housel: Gold collapse: The start of something big?
Harvard Health Letters: Can you die of a broken heart?

Pete Spotts: Livable super-Earths? Two candidates among Kepler's latest finds

Nora Schultz: Oxytocin helps beat booze cravings

The Kosher Gourmet by Carole Kotkin: Middle Eastern cuisine meets Italian delicious with this lentil and eggplant pastitsio

April 17, 2013

Shira Rubin: Too much of a good thing? 'Palestinians' realize downside of foreign aid boom

Geoffrey Mohan: Can computers decode dreams? Researchers take a first step

Morgan Housel: BAD NEWS: EVERYONE IS RIGHT!
Brierley Wright, M.S., R.D.: 6 heart-healthy eating tips help cut saturated fat but not taste

Michael Craig Miller, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Told your child has sensory processing disorder? Seek a second opinion

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: Corn and Curry Add Zing to Chilled Soup

April 15, 2013

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: The Death of Education?

Kristen Chick: Egyptian Christians respond with harsh words to attack -- rocks, Molotov cocktails, and gunfire -- against main cathedral

Marcy Darnovsky and Karuna Jaggar: High Court to decide if you should own your DNA
Howard LaFranchi: US bracing for more Russian blowback after taking action against 18 more human rights violators

Kristin Ohlson : The loneliest fight

The Kosher Gourmet by Dana Velden: A tasty, rich dish that hints at spring's arrival while still anchored in a favorite winter staple

April 12, 2013

Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb: The Inspired Loner

Caroline B. Glick : Must we continue to be enablers of our own destruction?

Mark Clayton: New cybersecurity bill: Privacy threat or crucial band-aid?
Morgan Housel: Twitter: The carnival barker of investing

Harvard Health Letters.: Dietary supplements: Do they help or hurt?

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Jackie Robinson's Friend, Hank Greenberg; CNN's Jake Tapper; Texas County in the News is named for 19thC. Jewish soldier and Congressman

The Kosher Gourmet by Susan Russo: FRUITY QUINOA STUFFED PEPPERS: A flavorful, colorful and edible vessel of delicately fluffy, mildly nutty filling combined with chewy apricots, tangy cherries, and crunchy pistachios

April 10, 2013

Edmund Sanders: Kerry leaves Israel with hopes, but few results

Nicholas Blanford: Iran's 'axis of resistance' loses its Palestinian arm to Syrian war

Peter Grier: North Korean missiles: Could US shoot them down?
Morgan Housel: Warning: Don't waste your capital being fooled by profit prophets

Donald Hensrud, M.D.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: Take vitamin supplements with caution --- even approved, they may actually do damage

Eryn Brown: 74 DNA discoveries move cure closer for three cancers

Mark Guarino: Google Glass already has some lawmakers on high alert

The Kosher Gourmet by Dana Velden: A soup to feed every guest, no matter how finicky

April 8, 2013

Jonathan Tobin: What Part of No Preconditions Do American Jews Not Get?

Christa Case Bryant: No Place on Earth

Fred Weir: Is Putin finally trading his own party for a new power base?

Hara Estroff Marano: The Spice of Life
P.J. Skerrett, M.D.: Harvard Health Letters: Generic drugs: Don't ask, just tell

David Cook : Husband-hunting advice from Princeton alum triggers outrage, humor

The Kosher Gourmet by James T. Farmer III : A simple, rustic white pizza: Good ingredients, fresh herbs, and an infused olive layered upon a crispy crust hits the spot


Jewish World Review March 17, 2005 / 6 Adar II, 5765

Learning our lesson

By Jonathan Tobin


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Palestinian-aid debate shows perils of both ignoring the past and living in it



http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Sinn Fein Party leader Gerry Adams is in the United States this week for St. Patrick's Day.


But as disinterested in Adams as some of us might be, the comings and goings of the head of the political wing of the Provisional Irish Republican Army should also be required reading for those who care about the Arab-Israeli conflict.


That's because up until recently, Adams could not only count on a friendly reception from prominent Irish-American politicians such as Sen. Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) and Rep. Peter King (R-N.Y.), but he has even spent the holiday in the White House.


Not this year.


The euphoria over the 1999 Good Friday Agreement that seemed to mark the beginning of the end of the violence in Northern Ireland made Adams very popular in the United States, even among those who were not necessarily sympathetic to his cause of uniting all 32 counties of the Emerald Isle (including the six currently living under the Union Jack) in a socialist republic free of British rule.


Thankfully, there's been no return to an all-out terror war between Protestants and Catholics. But the descent of the "military" wing of the IRA into brutal criminality, and the unwillingness of the group to disarm and operate as a strictly political entity have made life abroad a little less pleasant for their mouthpiece.

THE FLAVOR OF THE MONTH
This time around, Adams will not lift a glass with Kennedy or King. And the White House is also out of bounds. The anger of the leaders of both Britain and the Irish Republic — not to mention the revulsion of a growing number of Northern Irish Catholics at the lawlessness of his men — have made Adams unwelcome on these shores.


That is a lesson that recently elected Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas should take to heart.


Abbas is the flavor of the month these days in Washington. Like Adams, and unlike his old comrade Yasser Arafat, Abbas wears a suit, not combat fatigues. And on this image as a peacemaker do the hopes of Americans and Israelis rest.


In the few short months since Arafat passed on to what one can only hope will be a measure of justice in the next world, Abbas has transformed the image of the Palestinians in the United States. Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon and President George W. Bush both agree that Abbas is a worthy partner for peace. And they are doing their best to bolster what they hope will be his campaign to transform Palestinian society.


Essential to the plan is money. Abbas needs American funds to bankroll the bankrupt P.A., and jumpstart a Palestinian economy ravaged by both war and the corruption of Abbas' own Fatah Party. The White House wants Congress to give Abbas $200 million now. There is little doubt he will get it, and even less that more will follow in the future.


The sticking point is the reluctance of some members of Congress to approve the aid without including provisions that would provide genuine accountability for the use of the money by the Palestinians. Interestingly, the current legislation on the aid does not include something that served in the past to make oversight impossible.


What's missing is a measure that would allow President Bush to override congressional concerns about misuse of American taxpayer dollars by the Palestinians by his invoking unspecified "national security" concerns. In the Oslo era, this mechanism allowed President Bill Clinton to silence questions about Arafat and keep the dollars flowing.


The mainstream American Israel Public Affairs Committee supports both the aid and the omission of the waiver. But some American Jewish supporters of the peace process — not to mention the Bush administration — think eliminating the waiver is a bad idea.


The Israel Policy Forum, which pushed for the failed Oslo process even after it crashed and burned, thinks giving real accountability for the aid is endangering "goodwill" for the Palestinians and Abbas.

CAN'T SAY ‘NO’ TO ISRAEL
On the other end of the spectrum, the Zionist Organization of America thinks the aid is just a bad idea. They point to Abbas' history of support for terror and his dabbling in Holocaust denial as reason to make the P.A. ineligible for U.S. help.


Their argument has logic, but the problem is that if there is to be a peace process at all, the facts dictate that it must be greased by American cash. Call it bribery if you like, but no dough, no chance of peace. And as long as the Israeli people and their government want to pursue the Abbas gambit, American Jews cannot say no to it, no matter how justified concerns about the P.A. leader might seem.


But without holding the Palestinian's feet to the fire on his pledges to end terror and create a real democracy (as opposed to the kleptocracy he and Arafat ran for a decade), there's little chance the outcome will differ from the Oslo debacle.


What we should be asking both the administration and Congress to do is to not repeat the mistakes the United States made in the 1990s as "goodwill" trumped the truth about Arafat.


It may be that in many respects, Abbas is no different than his predecessor, but if he delivers a real cease-fire and creates something approaching a civil society on his side of the security fence, few Israelis will care.


Rather than squabbling over the terms of the aid in a futile repeat of the stupid politics of the Oslo era, Bush and American supporters of Israel need to be creating a process of accountability for Abbas, not a mechanism for him to escape the consequences of his actions.


Abbas and those who would give him a free ride need to look at what happened to Gerry Adams this week and take heed.


If Fatah and its Al Aksa Martyrs Brigade, in addition to Hamas and Islamic Jihad, prove as unwilling to disarm as the IRA, then peace is not going to be on the menu. Oslo should teach us that the revival of hopes for peace is exactly the time to set tough standards of behavior. Wearing a suit and speaking nicely wasn't enough to give Adams a pass. The same standard ought to apply to Abbas.

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JWR contributor Jonathan S. Tobin is executive editor of the Philadelphia Jewish Exponent. Let him know what you think by clicking here.

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© 2005, Jonathan Tobin