Opinion

As thousands of educators gather in Denver this week, July 3-7, for the National Education Association’s annual Representative Assembly, delegates will make decisions that influence what educational resources will be used by educators across the country. Historically, some delegates have pushed for the NEA to use anti-Semitic, anti-Zionist or biased materials about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Those decisions raise an important question that extends well beyond one convention.

Penning a column due to be published on America’s semi-quincentennial is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, so I better do a darn good job, right? As an American turned dual American-Israeli citizen, I see America’s 250th birthday as an opportunity to reflect on some of the values implanted within me growing up. One of those is dialogue across divides, or sharing friendship despite different communal, political or religious affiliations.

Whither USA on the birthdayof the world’s oldest democracy? Judging the foundation of the United States of America by the norms of the time, the signing of the Declaration of …

Remember when President Trump pronounced Gaza as the future Riviera of the Middle East? Remember when the US-imposed ceasefire in Gaza of Oct. 10 promised the reconstruction of Gaza premised on the disarming of Hamas? Remember — if only for the one week since it was signed — the US-brokered peace plan for Lebanon, based on the disarmament of Hezbollah?

Two hundred and fifty years. This July 4th carries an additional dimension of momentousness: a landmark birthday, officially called America’s semiquincentennial celebration. It’s been exactly a quarter of a millennium since the Declaration of Independence was signed.

In the UK, broadcasters are not permitted to report on elections on election day itself. What a contrast from here, where for weeks I’ve been receiving regular reports from the Secretary of State on how many primary ballots have been returned. Some are very detailed — for example how many Democratic or Republican ballots have been returned. It feels like there’s an undercurrent there.

Am I simply living on the wrong side of the tracks? Or is it cynicism? Perhaps I am seeing the present distorted by rose colored glasses from the good old days? Is it economic — society has robbed many of the good life? Maybe I never noticed before? Maybe nothing has changed?

As the deal that President Trump struck with Iran’s new “rational” leadership becomes clear, it gives Iran everything and gains nothing for the US, for Israel or for Lebanon. Sen. Bill Cassidy called the “Memorandum of Understanding” between the US and Iran “the worst foreign policy blunder in decades.” That’s a Republican speaking.

Although I like to believe that last week’s signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) is not the end of the story, but rather roughly equivalent to the Book of Esther’s chapter 3, when Haman’s power seemed elevated and formalized as he became the recipient of the king’s signatory ring. The story of the Megilla still has multiple chapters waiting to unfold before Haman’s downfall is final. The tension and uncertainty still weigh heavily.

I never understood people who said Trump was Israel’s best friend. One thing we know about Donald Trump is that he is unreliable. Suddenly, for Israel’s “best friend,” uranium enrichment by Iran, a 747 from Qatar and cutting Israel out of Saudi-US engagement — all red lines for Israel and its allies — are on the table. With a best friend like this, who needs enemies?

“Genocide” is an intent to exterminate an entire group, and an effort to actualize the intent. Israel has no such intent. It went to war in Gaza as a matter of self-defense. By definition, self-defense cannot constitute an intent to exterminate an entire group. When Israel declared war on Hamas after Oct. 7, it was not for revenge, not for retaliation, not tit-for-tat. It was for self-preservation.

Moriah Chen from the Hidabroot website published the following questionnaire for anyone who wants to gain a clearer picture of themselves and of their mission in the world: 1. What would you do for free? Think about the activities you do without noticing the passage of time. What makes you forget to eat or sleep? What subject can you talk about for hours without stopping? Sometimes your profession or direction in life is hidden in the things you would do even without being paid.