Editorial & Opinion | Editorial

The Deficit Tightrope

02/02/2010 | Editorial

It is an immutable law of politics that politicians hate budget deficits, but even more than that they hate cutting pet programs and those that benefit their own constituents. In unveiling his $3.8 trillion budget, which includes both new spending to spur job growth and cuts aimed at deficit reduction, President Barack Obama faces a particularly unenviable task.

Raising The Bar

02/02/2010 | Editorial

‘Transparency” and “good governance” are two popular phrases these days in regards to policies of nonprofit organizations, particularly in the aftermath of the Madoff scandal.

Benefits Of Hebrew School

01/21/2010 | Ilana Burgess | Staff Writer | Editorial

I read your article “Home Is Where The Hebrew School Is” (Dec. 18) with great interest. I agree with the idea that children with special needs require individual and more personal attention while engaged in studies leading up to their bar/bat mitzvah.

Is Lemkin’s Legacy Going Unheeded?

01/22/2010 | Eric Herschthal | Staff Writer | Editorial

The Center for Jewish History is currently showing an exhibit dedicated to the life and work of Raphael Lemkin. If his name isn’t quite familiar to you, rest assured, you’re not alone. In any event, you certainly know the one word that’s become synonymous with him: genocide. In 1943, Lemkin invented the term. And in 1951, he saw to it that the United Nations make it a punishable crime.

Haiti: Our Disproportionate Response

01/21/2010 | Staff Writer | Editorial

In a world of rather frequent natural disasters, the earthquake in Haiti and its eerie, hellish aftermath retains the ability to shock, reminding us of the fragility of life and even civilization itself. And yet, if we will call earthquakes “acts of God,” there is some solace in seeing how so many of us have responded in a way that ironically can only be called the image of God and all that’s holy.

Speaking Out On Health Care

01/21/2010 | Staff Writer | Editorial

In recent weeks we have commented on the longstanding debate over whether there is too much redundancy and duplication in the Jewish communal world — comments that have touched a raw nerve, judging by the e-mails we’ve received and the blogs we’ve read.

So it’s nice to report on a Jewish organization that has had more than its share of woes in recent years but is now experiencing a kind of rejuvenation, thanks to a membership energized by the national debate over health care reform.