Latest news with #JeffJacoby
Boston Globe
24-03-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Antisemitism — both a scourge and a topic of debate
Many of the strongest supporters of Israeli and US policies toward occupied Palestine prefer to see no difference between a) opposition to their politics and b) antisemitism, as if the two can never be distinct from each other. They resort to cries of antisemitism as a way to admonish anybody and everybody who expresses criticism of Israeli policy. This tactic is disrespectful to Jews, Jewish history, Jewish culture, and Jewish values. It is a grotesque distortion of everything Jews have faced historically, and it minimizes the much-needed recognition of Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up Yosef Brody Advertisement Brooklyn, N.Y. Antisemitism among the young is seen more frequently on the right Judging from the headline on Jeff Jacoby's column — 'Antisemitism is growing worse on the left. And on the right.' — one might conclude that he sees an equal level of bias between these groups. This impression is reinforced later in his piece: 'Antisemitic attitudes today run strongest among the young — on both sides of the political spectrum. Repeat: both sides.' Yet a Advertisement Antisemitic opinions or actions, regardless of where along the political spectrum they may occur, are intolerable. But it's useful to know where this pestilence finds its greatest support. Know your enemy. Richard M. Nasser Brookline Do more to examine the history of Christian antisemitism Memo to Christian communities, from a fellow Christian: Your Jewish friends and neighbors are wounded and alarmed by the rising tide of anti-Jewish hate that Jeff Jacoby writes about. They wonder: Will the tide keep rising? How far will it go? Could it portend a return of horrors inflicted on European Jewish communities in centuries past? If things get worse, will non-Jews stand with their Jewish neighbors against the forces of hate? Christian communities have a responsibility to help, and a way to help. They can start by infusing their own communities with greater awareness of the history of Christian antisemitism. The story of Western antisemitism is darker, longer, and much more Christian than many Christians are aware. Christians should learn and tell this history, with due attention to Christian responsibility, as a regular part of Christian faith practice. Christian preaching should discuss it. Christian adult and youth education programs should explain it. This will help contain today's rising antisemitism while at long last giving Jewish communities a measure of assurance that Christians will stand with them against anti-Jewish hate. Stephen Van Evera Co-chair Lexington United Against Antisemitism Lexington Oct. 7, 2023, attack brought out an insidious hatred You know a hatred is insidious when hateful rhetoric comes from both sides of the political spectrum and when anger arises against your group after innocent civilians are murdered and taken hostage on a joyous holiday. Thank you to Jeff Jacoby for describing this injustice, and thank you to reliable allies who stand up against the ancient hatred of antisemitism. Advertisement Edwin Andrews Malden
Boston Globe
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
Antisemitism is growing worse on the left. And on the right.
Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up But for how long? The book ends with disaster averted and Mordecai and Esther enjoying royal favor. Yet Ahasuerus — as vainglorious, amoral, and mercurial as ever — remains firmly on the throne. What assurance do Persia's Jews have that the capricious king who first endorsed genocide and then countermanded it isn't going to reverse course again? One of the timeless lessons of Purim and the Book of Esther is that when society is ruled by depraved or unstable people, no one is safe — especially not vulnerable or vilified minorities like the Jews. Advertisement Again and again across the centuries, Jewish communities that believed themselves secure and welcome woke up to find themselves targeted by haters. Ten or 15 years ago it was still possible to believe that 21st-century America could never succumb to such antisemitic frenzy. But anyone with eyes to see knows better now. In the wake of Oct. 7, 2023, Jew-hatred that was once confined to the fringes has spread toward the mainstream. Advertisement It is rare now to see a synagogue that doesn't employ armed guards to keep worshipers safe. Jewish schools have had to Antisemitic attitudes both sides. For many years it was an article of faith among liberals, including liberal Jews, that antisemitism in America was Republican leaders, to both their credit and their political advantage, have focused a spotlight on the eruption of antisemitic speech and demonstrations at Unfortunately, too many conservatives and Republicans are making the mistake that partisans on the left used to make and refusing to acknowledge that antisemitism on their side of the aisle remains a serious problem. During the 2024 campaign, Advertisement Yet the same administration that is targeting Columbia for tolerating antisemitism has just elevated a Pentagon spokesperson, Kingsley Wilson, who has The Book of Esther opens with the description of an opulent party hosted by Ahasuerus — a party, the Talmudic sages taught, to which the cream of Persian Jewry was invited. The Jews of that era imagined that their position was secure, only to learn how quickly their stability could collapse once the air was poisoned with antisemitism. For Jews, vigilance is always imperative. From Haman to Hitler to Hamas and its supporters, To subscribe to Arguable, Jeff Jacoby's weekly newsletter, visit . Jeff Jacoby can be reached at
Boston Globe
09-03-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
Mar-a-Lago's ‘trade deficit' isn't a problem. Neither is America's.
All that, of course, would be in addition to the palatial dwelling itself, which was built of Doria limestone imported from Genoa, marble blocks from Cuba, and Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up Trump may be a fervent protectionist who Mar-a-Lago, which exports nothing except perhaps some Nevertheless, Trump has long persisted in believing that the way to expand American wealth is to make it harder for Americans to import goods from abroad. Hence his new trade war, launched with the imposition of a 25 percent tariff on most imports from Canada and Mexico and now scheduled to take effect on April 2. Advertisement 'The tariffs are going to make us very rich and very strong,' But that can only be true if the way to enrich Americans is to reduce their choices and raise their prices. It's crackpot economics, and even if Trump's most devoted acolytes can't see that, the market can. When the new tariffs kicked in, Wall Street began hemorrhaging; by the end of the first trading day, the US stock market had Trump's rhetoric about trade oozes with nationalistic resentment. 'We support Canada $200 billion a year in subsidies one way or the other,' None of that makes sense. To begin with, Trump's basic facts are wrong: The US trade deficit with Canada a trade deficit is not a subsidy . When US consumers and companies buy goods, services, equipment, and commodities from Canadian suppliers and manufacturers, they aren't bestowing a gift or paying above the market price. They are spending their wealth to buy things they want or need and can afford to pay foreigners to supply. The United States is not being cheated when it imports products from Canada and around the world; it is being enriched. Just like Mar-a-Lago. Advertisement Contrary to Trump's petulant claim, we do need Canadian lumber. Otherwise, American construction firms wouldn't Americans . The same is true of all international trade, just as it's true of all trade across state lines and municipal lines. Both sides benefit or there would be no deal. For most of the past 50 years, the United States has run a trade deficit with the world. For most of those 50 years, the US economy has rocked. Curtailing Americans' ability to do business with their neighbors will not make America great again. It will only make it poorer, no matter how much Trump insists otherwise. To subscribe to Arguable, Jeff Jacoby's weekly newsletter, visit . Jeff Jacoby can be reached at
Boston Globe
04-03-2025
- Politics
- Boston Globe
With terrible timing, Wu blunders on crime
'My condolences and all of our thoughts,' she said as the cameras rolled, 'are with the family of the individual whose life has been lost.' She used her opening words not to praise the quick-thinking cop who likely prevented one or more homicides, not to reassure the public that Boylston Street was safe, not to express compassion for the two people who were nearly stabbed — not even to announce that, as with all police killings, an investigation was immediately being opened. Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up No: Wu's first instinct was to offer condolences for the knife-wielding aggressor who had been killed before he could commit homicide. Advertisement As a matter of simple empathy, it is natural to offer words of comfort to the loved ones of someone who has died suddenly and terribly. Whatever wrongdoing Jaramillo may have been involved in, there is no reason to be unkind to his family as they Advertisement Even before the shooting, Wu was scheduled to appear Wednesday at a high-stakes hearing on Capitol Hill. She has been summoned, along with the mayors of New York, Chicago, and Denver, to testify Wednesday before the US House Oversight Committee about the city's so-called sanctuary policy and its impact on public safety. The committee's Republican majority has been touting the hearing as a showdown that will link the Democratic mayors to dangerous crimes committed by immigrants without legal status. In reality, Boston is not notorious for harboring criminal offenders; Advertisement I doubt that Wu intended to suggest she cares more about criminals than about victims. But it isn't hard to understand how such a subtext could be inferred. Expressing sympathy is a natural human response, but the wrong context and timing can transform a moment of compassion into a political liability. Wu's words reinforced that Democrats and progressives have But the mayor's miscalculation on Boylston Street is a reminder that in our unforgiving political climate, every utterance can ignite partisan flames. Now, her impending congressional appearance becomes even more daunting. With critics poised to seize on every nuance, she faces the double challenge of defending both her policies and her lapse in judgment. To subscribe to Arguable, Jeff Jacoby's weekly newsletter, visit . Jeff Jacoby can be reached at
Boston Globe
23-02-2025
- Business
- Boston Globe
‘Union Joe' left the labor movement weaker than he found it
Advertisement 'A year into his presidency,' Get The Gavel A weekly SCOTUS explainer newsletter by columnist Kimberly Atkins Stohr. Enter Email Sign Up So let's take stock. After four years of 'the most pro-union administration in American history,' how are unions doing? Judging from the upbeat media coverage over the past couple of years — the stories about unions being at their ' But unions have hardly been racking up impressive victories or recruiting new members at remarkable rates. Quite the opposite. On Jan. 28 the Bureau of Labor Statistics released its Advertisement In the shrunk by 3.4 million. Outside of government, union membership has all but melted away. Last year the number of private-sector union members dropped by 184,000, reducing the share of nongovernment employees who belong to unions to a puny 5.9 percent. Democrats have long characterized unions as As Dominic Pino not union members. Efforts to unionize employees attract disproportionate media cheerleading, especially when the unions target iconic American companies like Starbucks and Amazon. But there isn't nearly as much coverage when workers in high-profile workplaces vote against joining a union — as they have recently at a Advertisement Some unions certainly have had a run of success, as with the In the abstract, most Americans say Two or three generations ago, a union card might have been a ticket to economic stability. That is no longer the case, as Veronique de Rugy, an economist at George Mason University, has observed. 'While unionized plants pay higher wages and benefits than do nonunionized ones,' Advertisement In the third decade of the 21st century, it is clear that the great majority Americans simply do not want what unions are peddling. After four years of the 'most pro-union administration in American history,' unions are less relevant to American workers' lives and livelihoods than they have been in generations. The air is going out of the labor movement, and not even a president can pump it up. To subscribe to Arguable, Jeff Jacoby's weekly newsletter, visit . Jeff Jacoby can be reached at
