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June 19, 2013

Peter Grier and Harry Bruinius: In the end, NSA might not need to snoop so secretly after all

Howard LaFranchi: Taliban peace talks hold glimmer of hope, but also unanswerable questions

Warren Richey: Supreme Court: For right to remain silent, a suspect must speak
Meredith Cohn: Leeches are making a comeback as medical helpers

Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D.: How to pick the healthiest breakfast cereal

The Kosher Gourmet by : Spicy Double Chocolate Banana Muffins

June 17, 2013

Rabbi Simcha Weinstein: Black to the Future: American Apparel Gets Biblical

Patrik Jonsson: Minnesota Nazi: How did Nazi hunters miss Michael Karkoc?

Kate Irby, Ali Watkins, Trevor Graff and Kevin Thibodeaux: All the ways you're being watched
Don Lee: G-8 meeting will test NSA leaks' effect on U.S. influence

Patrik Jonsson: Fort Hood shooting: Judge nixes Nidal Hasan defense strategy. What now?

Stacey Burling: Why the stigma for migraine sufferers?

The Kosher Gourmet by Lisa Abraham: Does it work? 5 new kitchen gadgets put to the test

June 14, 2013

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: A spiritual budget: Religious economics and being a ruler

John P. Martin: Hitler insider's missing diary found

Matt Pearce: NSA surveillance disclosure could affect court cases
Peter Tinti: US bounties changes strategy on (Wild, Wild) West African jihadis

Daniel Pendrick, M.D.: Memory loss? Old age may be the least of it

Lauren F. Friedman: But it's all natural! Should we have an instinctive preference for herbal remedies?

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Streisand and Alicia Keys in Israel; "Girls" Stuff; Mel Brooks, Another TV special; Superman (who is Jewish) returns --- Israeli plays his mom

The Kosher Gourmet by Sharon K. Ghag : Bored with salad? Bling it up a bit (4 effortless recipes that will result in a 'WOW!')

June 12, 2013

Stephanie Hanes: Little girls or little women? The Disney princess effect

Fred Weir: In tweak to US, Russia would 'consider' asylum for Snowden

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: What's so special about Omega-3 supplements?
Morgan Housel: What newspapers were saying when you should have been buying

Pete Spotts: How cockroaches evolved so as to bypass 'roach motels'

The Kosher Gourmet by Anjali Prasertong: Deep-dish cookie: Warm, gooey and a little over the top

June 10, 2013

Joseph A. Slobodzian: Faith healing and third degree murder: Thorny legal case
Lindsay Wise: Few options for online users to avoid spying, experts say

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: There are plenty of nutritional food bargains out there
Harvard Health Letters: Can bariatric surgery control diabetes?

Zach Murdock: Superglue helps doctors save infant's life

The Kosher Gourmet by Celebrated chef Mario Batali : As good as grilling gets: Rib eye with dry mushroom spice rub

June 7, 2013

Rabbi David Aaron: Beating jealousy

Caroline B. Glick: Wounded . . . and dangerous

Clifford D. May: Al Qaeda vs. Hezbollah
Harvard Health Letters: Fighting back against allergy season

Kimberly Lankford: Grandparents who use FSA to cover grandkid's braces and other must-know info

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom:J ewish Tony Nominees/Tony Awards; Jewish Teen Actor In Sci-Fi Flick; Jewish singer in "Voice" finals

The Kosher Gourmet by Anjali Prasertong: A tart filling so good it might not make it to the crust

June 5, 2013

John Rosemond: Mom, Dad: Talk More and listen less

Kristen Chick: Egypt court sentences 43 pro-democracy workers to prison

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: Mushrooms Have Medicinal As Well As Culinary Value
Morgan Housel: Why you never learn from your investment mistakes

Don Lee: In China, kindergarten rivalry takes deadly turn

The Kosher Gourmet by Sara Kate Gillingham-Ryan: 30-Minute Coq au Vin isn't a dream

June 3, 2013

Molly Hennessy-Fiske: Military judge to consider letting Fort Hood shooting defendant represent himself

Richard A. Serrano: Pvt. Bradley Manning's WikiLeaks trial also a test for government

Mark Trumbull: Have degree, driving cab: Nearly half of college grads are overqualified
Kim Lankford: What to do when long-term care insurance premiums rise

Deborah Netburn: Study: Adults' mouth bacteria may help babies

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Jewish Contestant on 'The Voice'; Will Smith's 'Jewish movie family'; Bravo Gives Long Island Jews the Jersey Shore Treatment; Magicians and More

The Kosher Gourmet by Bill Ward: How to be as refined as the wines at a wine tasting

May 29, 2013

Andrew Connelly and Helene Bienvenu: The Little Synagogue that Refused to Die

Dennis Prager: The 'Muslims-Killed-by-the-West' Lie

David Clark Scott: Open war on teachers?
Morgan Housel: If you know only five things about investing, make it these

Sara Reardon: AGenome detectives change the donation game

Deborah Netburn: A one-way ticket to Mars? 78,000-plus and counting apply by video

The Kosher Gourmet by Bev Bennett: CHEDDAR AND CHERRY MUFFINS --- your mouth is already watering

May 24, 2013

Rabbi Tzvi Hersh Weinreb: When I didn't so 'humbly disagree'

Caroline B. Glick: Thank you, Hafez al-Assad

Diana West: From the Brooklyn Bridge to London
Morgan Housel: Why spotting bubbles is so much harder than you think

Environmental Nutrition editors: NuVal labeling to the rescue?

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Memorial Day: Jews Serving and KIA in War on Terror; Liberace Bio-Pic; Jew Wins "Survivor"; Shalom, Dr. Brothers; More

The Kosher Gourmet by Emma Christensen: HIDE THESE FROZEN TREATS FROM THE KIDDIES!: Sangria pops; Irish cream pudding pops; mango Lassi pops

May 22, 2013

John Thorne: They launched the 'Arab Spring' but now yearn for the good old days of a strongman

John Rosemond: 'Disciplinary math' adds up to parental successl

Warren Richey: Are prayers before public meetings OK? Supreme Court to decide
Rick Montgomery: Use of ADHD drugs as study aid raises concern on campuses

Brierley Wright, M.S., R.D.: 6 convincing reasons you should keep carbs in your diet

Eoin O'Carroll: Scientists examine nothing, find something

The Kosher Gourmet by Carole Kotkin: This soup is made from one of the great pleasures of spring: A wonderful pairing of rosy color and earthy tang

May 20, 2013

Richard A. Serrano: Is Meir Kahane's assassin now a changed man?

Hannan Adely: Town raises Palestinian flag at City Hall

Melissa Healy: Genetic copies of living people from embryos no longer science fiction
Morgan Housel: When smart investors do stupid things

Sharon Saloman, M.S., R.D.: Hunger games: Eat more, weigh less, without starving

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Jews Inducted into Rock Hall of Fame; Anton Yelchin co-stars in New "Trek" film; Kutcher (but not Kunis) visits Israel; Jewish TV Star Praises Jewish Rap Star

The Kosher Gourmet by Cathy Pollak: WARNING: This WALNUT CAKE WITH PRALINE FROSTING, perfect for afternoon coffee, is addicting


Jewish World Review Dec. 17, 2006 / 16 Kislev, 5767

A study in bipartisan consensus

By Debra J. Saunders

Debra J. Saunders
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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Even if the Iraq Study Group represents a collection of the usual self-congratulatory swells who are positively breathless in their admiration of each other's ability to come to — all bow — a "bipartisan consensus," the 10 members are right about this much: If the American public isn't on board, U.S. policy in Iraq is, as co-chairs James Baker and Lee Hamilton wrote, "doomed to failure."


Perhaps that is why the group produced a report with pronouncements that both sides of the Iraq war debate can embrace. For Republicans, the ISG report rejects calls for "immediate withdrawal" of U.S. troops from Iraq. It also quotes an Iraqi official who told the group, "Al-Qaida is now a franchise in Iraq, like McDonald's" — and notes that al-Qaida will portray any U.S. failure in Iraq as "a significant victory that will be featured prominently as they recruit for their cause in the region and around the world."


For Democrats, the report rejects "an open-ended commitment to keep large numbers of American troops deployed in Iraq." (Note: It helps if you don't think of 70,000 soldiers needed to train and equip Iraqi forces after U.S. combat troops are redeployed as a large number.) Add the ISG's criticism of President Bush for failing to negotiate with Iran and Syria.


Both Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid and NBC reporter David Gregory were able to brand the report "a rejection" of Bush's handling of Iraq. The ISG report lays out the treacherous ground in Iraq, where the interests of Sunnis, Shiites and Kurds collide, and those who work for the elected Iraqi government tend to serve the interests of their own ethnic or sectarian groups, not the Iraqi nation.


In such an environment, every reform potentially can trigger an adverse reaction. And that includes the ISG's 79 recommendations, which easily could lead to more woes in Iraq.


On their face, many proposals seem benign — such as calling for Bush to negotiate with Syria and Iran. Readers have e-mailed me with the simple question: What's the matter with talking to Iran? Of course, the answer is that there is nothing wrong with talking to Iran, but there is something wrong with what Iran wants to get out of talks, and the result could be a nuclear war — and that might be problematic.

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Ditto the report's take on Israel, which it writes "should return the Golan Heights, with a U.S. security guarantee for Israel that could include an international force on the border, including U.S. troops" if both sides want them. Great. U.S. troops in Israel to get U.S. troops out of Iraq, because Iraq is a quagmire. Throwing Israel into the Iraq mix seems to me a good way to guarantee failure.


Then, there is this controversial proposal: "If the Iraqi government does not make substantial progress toward the achievement of milestones on national reconciliation, security and governance, the United States should reduce its political, military or economic support."


Maybe that approach would work. Or maybe the promise to withdraw money and U.S. troops sends a dangerous signal to Iraqi terrorists. To wit: If they kill enough Iraqi civilians and U.S. troops, America will withdraw U.S. troops sooner. Besides, the 2008 elections present a timetable of sorts. If the Iraqi government fails to improve, the 2006 elections suggest, Americans will elect a president who promises complete and immediate withdrawal.


Some of the more modest recommendations make more sense. Recommendation 73, for example, notes that the U.S. embassy in Iraq employs 1,000 people, but only 33 Arabic speakers, six of them fluent. President Bush should find that situation unacceptable. The ISG also calls for increasing U.S. economic assistance to Iraq to $5 billion per year, and noted that Americans can't expect the Iraqi army to perform on an annual $3 billion appropriation — or less than what the U.S. spends in Iraq every two weeks. The best summation of the situation in Iraq came from an unnamed U.S. official who told the study group: "Our leaving would make it worse. ... The current approach without modification will not make it better."


Bush and his new secretary of defense, Robert Gates, now must find a way to make it better.

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© 2006, Creators Syndicate

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