Palestinian-Israeli security cooperation ramped up despite crisis
By Abdullah H. Erakat and Linda Gradstein, The Media Line As thousands of Israeli soldiers comb every inch of the West Bank in an intense search for three kidnapped Israeli teenagers, Palestinian security forces say they are doing everything they can to help find the boys. Despite anger in theContinue Reading
Alleged friends
Shoshana Wineburg’s impassioned plea for “transparency” regarding BDS and other issues germane to the Israel-Palestinian conflict in her open letter to Ari Shavit (June 13) begs an obvious question: Short of unconditional surrender to Mahmoud Abbas and his kleptocratic Palestinian Authority, when might we expect some transparency on the partContinue Reading
Speak for yourself
This is in response to Shoshana Wineburg’s open letter to Ari Shavit of June 13. I am a Millennial. I have been on Birthright and formed lasting friendships. I have participated in the full range of Jewish observance, from Reform to Orthodox, and have invested much personal time and effortContinue Reading
Misplaced priorities
Asher A. Nov’s letter (“The Greatest Sin?” June 13th) decrying the JTNews’s reporting of the facts surrounding the Eli Varon case displays an unfortunate corruption of priorities. Janis Siegel did not humiliate anybody. She reported the facts of an important case that deals with an issue that our community mustContinue Reading
A long line of leaders
After reading the recent opinion piece by Rabbi Oren Hayon (“How much have we lost?” May 30) about the divisive BDS debate at the UW, I’m struck by the strong, thoughtful, effective leadership we enjoy and have enjoyed at our Hillel. Rabbi Hayon didn’t fully describe the important strategic roleContinue Reading
Jews and guns: What’s our responsibility?
By Emily K. Alhadeff, Associate Editor, The Jewish Sound Mike Tobias lives on a boat in Ballard with his wife, their dogs, and two guns. On the back of his car are two bumper stickers: One has an image of a Star of David in American flag print, two rifles,Continue Reading
Ethan Louis Clancy
Ethan will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah July 3, 2014 in Israel. His family attends Temple De Hirsch Sinai. Ethan is the son of Scott and Deborah Kaplan Clancy and the brother of Noah. His grandparents are Harold and Ruth Kaplan of Boynton Beach, Fla., and the late Gary and Mary HelenContinue Reading
Noah Michael Clancy
Noah will celebrate his Bar Mitzvah on July 3, 2014, in Israel. His family attends Temple De Hirsch Sinai. Noah is the son of Scott and Deborah Kaplan Clancy and the brother of Ethan. His grandparents are Harold and Ruth Kaplan of Boynton Beach, Fla., and the late Gary and Mary HelenContinue Reading
Noah Elliott Feldman
Orly and Matthew Feldman announce the birth of their son, Noah Elliott, on March 21, 2014 at Overlake Hospital Medical Center in Bellevue. Noah weighed 8 lbs., 12 oz., and measured 20-1/4 inches. Noah has an older sister, Ella. His grandparents are Pearl and Meir Monk of Houston, Tex., andContinue Reading
Jacob Mair Plotnick
David and Amy Plotnick announce the birth of their son, Jacob, on April 28, 2014, at Swedish Edmonds. Jacob weighed 7 lbs., 13 oz. and measured 20 inches. Jacob’s big brothers are Noah and Caleb. His grandparents are Robin and Darryll Plotnik of Redmond, Julie Cook of Washington, DC, andContinue Reading
Israel to downscale operation searching for kidnapped teens
JERUSALEM (JTA) — Israel’s Cabinet agreed to reduce the presence of the country’s military in the West Bank and limit its incursions into Palestinian areas 12 days after the kidnapping of three Israeli teens. The operation to locate and return the teens, called Operation Brother’s Keeper, now will focus moreContinue Reading
Jewish man creates a Christian mezuzah called Christooza
(JNS.org) A Jewish man from the Queens borough of New York City is selling a Christian mezuzah dubbed the Christooza. Henry Zabarsky has created a hollow cross made from plastic which, like a traditional mezuzah, contains a prayer-inscribed parchment and must be affixed to a door post. Zabarsky, a financialContinue Reading
I say Granada, you say Grenada
(JTA) — An American dentist who said he is of Spanish-Jewish heritage is suing British Airways for flying him to Grenada rather than Granada. Edward Gamson and his partner believed they had first-class tickets to fly from London to Granada, in Spain, but once off the ground they discovered thatContinue Reading
Netanyahu addresses Presbyterian church divestment
Last Friday, June 22, the Presbyterian church announced its intentions to divest from companies that do business with Israel in the West Bank. Several Jewish organizations have spoken out against the divestment, and today in Netanyahu’s address to journalists from all over the Jewish world, he gave his own response to theContinue Reading
Palestinian pollster: Kidnapping “Very bad for Palestinian people”
By Felice Friedson, The Media Line “Most Palestinians want the [kidnapped Israeli] kids to be alive and to be found,” says Dr. Nabil Kukali, the founder and president of the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion, in an exclusive interview. “This will help the Palestinian cause.” Dr. Kukali spoke with TheContinue Reading
Kabbalat Kaboom: Celebrating the Fourth on a Friday
By Edmon J. Rodman, JTA World News LOS ANGELES (JTA) — Part “God Bless America,” part “Shabbat Shalom,” the Fourth of July this year falls on a Friday. In this land of religious freedom, how do we plan to observe both? As the sun sets over the “fruited plain,” willContinue Reading
How would universal preschool affect Jewish early childhood programs?
By Janis Siegel, Jewish Sound Correspondent Jewish preschools in Seattle may feel the impact of a city-wide ballot measure this November that would approve and fund Mayor Ed Murray’s Seattle Preschool Plan — a four-year, $58 million education levy for a voluntary universal preschool curriculum and performance assessment model. PassedContinue Reading
Six action items to #bringbackourboys
By Rivy Poupko Kletenik, Jewish Sound Columnist Dear Rivy, I know there seems to be no shortage of awful things that happen to us Jews, and maybe on some level we should get used to it. As I read about anti-Jewish activities in France for example, I confess — IContinue Reading
Ten things you might not know about the Ten Commandments
By Rabbi Bruce Kadden, Temple Beth El Earlier this month we celebrated Shavuot, the holiday of “matan Torah,” the “giving” or “gift” of Torah. It had special meaning for our family this year because our first grandchild, Matan Aviv Ballon, was born on May 5, which was not only CincoContinue Reading