Categories
Arts

The Spiritual Journey of Lawren Harris

The distinguished Canadian painter Lawren Harris (1885-1970) was of the view that the purpose of art is to bring people to a state of ecstasy. I doubt whether he accomplished this lofty objective, but I’m certain his paintings, particularly his stark landscapes, concentrated minds and elicited admiration. This occurred to me as I watched Where […]

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Jewish Affairs

Misguided Court Verdict

A regional court in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia has upheld the bizarre and troubling verdict of a lower court. Last week, the regional court ruled that the firebombing of a synagogue in the town of Wuppertal, in the summer of 2014, was an act of criminal arson rather than antisemitic animus. The synagogue, […]

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Middle East

Donald Trump And Israel

Benjamin Netanyahu could hardly contain himself after Donald Trump defeated Hillary Clinton in last November’s U.S. presidential election. In a video congratulating him on his victory, the Israeli prime minister, a catch in his voice, exuded glee, calling Trump “a true friend” of Israel and expressing confidence that he and president-elect would “strengthen the special alliance […]

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Arts

Gentleman’s Agreement Revisited

Reviewing Gentleman’s Agreement in the November 12, 1947 edition of The New York Times, movie critic Bosley Crowther wrote: “To millions of people throughout the country, it should bring an ugly and disturbing issue to light.” Crowther was referring to the timeless phenomenon of antisemitism, which is deeply rooted in Christian and Muslim societies. Released […]

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Middle East

Mideast Peace Conference Is Not “Rigged”

Contrary to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s assertion, the forthcoming Middle East peace conference, scheduled to be held in Paris on January 15 under the auspices of France, is neither “rigged” nor “a last gasp of the past.” The conference, expected to be attended by the representatives of 72 countries, including the major powers, will […]

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Commentary

Common Sense From Germany’s Vice Chancellor

Common sense is a quality all too often in short supply among politically correct politicians. Sigmar Gabriel, the vice chancellor of Germany and the leader of the left-of-center Social Democratic Party, is clearly not one of them. Taking aim recently at the phenomenon of Islamic radicalism in Germany, a country which has admitted more than […]

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Arts

Battling Islamic State In Syria

Tens of thousands of foreign volunteers have flocked to the ranks of Islamic State, the jihadist organization that has deeply entrenched itself in Iraq and Syria and carried out terrorist attacks around the world. Far fewer foreigners, however, have joined Kurdish forces trying to dislodge IS from its Syrian and Iraqi strongholds. In Frontline Fighting: […]

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Arts

The Failed Lavi Fighter Jet Program

Does anyone still remember the Lavi? In case you’ve forgotten,  the Lavi was a new-generation, high-performance made-in-Israel fighter aircraft that would have been the workhorse of the Israeli Air Force had it been approved for mass production in the 1980s. “It began as a project to provide Israel with an attack jet for the twenty-first […]

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Jewish Affairs

Argentina Reopens An Explosive Case

To its credit, the highest criminal appeals court in Argentina has reopened a murky and convoluted case relating to the deadliest terrorist attack in Argentina’s history, the bombing of the Jewish community center in Buenos Aires on July 18, 1994. In a unanimous decision recently, the Court of Cassation decided to reopen a file turning on […]

Categories
Arts

Past Life: An Israeli Film On The Holocaust

Avi Nesher’s Past Life summons up the terrors of the Holocaust. Scheduled to be presented by the Toronto Jewish Film Foundation’s Chai Tea series on January 15 at the Cineplex Cinemas Empress Walk theater at 1 p.m. and 4 p.m, it’s an Israeli-Polish production which shifts between West Germany, Israel and Poland in 1977. Nesher, the […]