Steve Kramer grew up in Atlantic City, graduated from Johns Hopkins in 1967, adopted the hippie lifestyle until 1973, then joined the family business for 15 years. Steve moved to Israel from Margate, NJ in 1991 with his family. He has written more than 1100 articles about Israel and Jews since making Aliyah. Steve and his wife Michal live in Kfar Saba.
I thank Marc W., an old high school and college friend, for inspiring this article regarding my April 12 column. You might have had similar questions to Marc’s. Below are my answers. [Steve Kramer]
Explaining Israeli Sovereignty in the Land of Israel Read More »
Middle East, Steve KramerWhat if American Jews read on the front pages of The New York Times and the Washington Post that Israeli Jews would estrange themselves from American Jews, if the latter chose to vote for a president who was lukewarm on Israel, instead of one who was very pro-Israel? Americans would be piqued that Israelis expected them to vote as if Israel were at the top of their priority list! [Steve Kramer]
In reply to 140 U.S. Jewish leaders Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, USAThe impact of the pandemic has caused a revolution in how we relate to each other: our main conduit is now the Internet, not personal contact. This year, our Seder will be attended by 15 others on Zoom. It won’t be perfect, there will be glitches, but Michal and I won’t be sitting at the table alone. (Those of you who are alone can make good use of the many websites offering special songs, prayers and more.) The pandemic has brought other, all-encompassing changes. Probably most significant is the apparent demise of globalization, which has been so trendy over the last generation. Right now, most borders worldwide are extremely well guarded, with stringent regulations for non-citizens in effect. [Steve Kramer]
Passover, the pandemic, and globalization Read More »
International, Jewish Religion, Middle East, Steve Kramer, USABenny Gantz’s current tactic (antithetical to what he campaigned on) is to cooperate with the anti-Zionist Arab parties to form a minority government; those Israeli Arab parties would remain outside of Blue and White’s coalition but would back it up. Is this a big deal, and if so, why? Because the anti-Zionist Arab parties will demand serious payback for backing the Blue and White coalition. [Steve Kramer]
Arab bloc support endangers the Jewish state Read More »
Middle East, Steve KramerA strong link exists between Israel and the US, personified by Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Trump. Therefore there is linkage between the two ongoing leadership contests. Although Israel had enjoyed non-partisan support in the US for decades, that diminished rapidly under the Obama administration. In fact, as a last parting shot, President Obama ordered his ambassador to the United Nations to refrain from vetoing a particularly nasty Security Council Resolution (2344), which basically declares that Jerusalem and Israel’s heritage is Muslim/Palestinian, not Jewish. [Steve Kramer]
OpEd: U.S., Israel benefit under Trump, Netanyahu Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, USAYes, this new plan visualizes a future State of Palestine in the Jewish homeland. But it’s highly unlikely that the PLO would agree to such a weak “state,” thereby enabling Israel to enlarge its territory within the four-year time frame allotted to the Palestinian Authority. (Consequences from establishing an Arab state, or not, are beyond the scope of this article.) Like Ben-Gurion and his cohorts, Netanyahu and the interim government, or a newly-elected government following the Israeli March 2 election, should grab this opportunity and build on it despite its imperfections. [Steve Kramer]
Israel should begin implementing Trump Plan Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, USAThe European Union is a group of countries which seemingly have a collective hatred of Israel, and by extension, the Israelis – 75% of whom are Jewish. (What else do we expect from the continent that brought us the Holocaust?) Not every country in the EU is vehement about their distaste for our Jewish country, but their collective decisions, by consensus, are testament to it. I love Brexit because it weakens the EU and will probably lead to a further lessening of its power. Thankfully, Boris Johnson soundly defeated Jeremy Corbyn in the latest UK elections, enabling the EU to begin leaving the EU imminently. [Steve Kramer]
It wasn’t Israel that accomplished the eradication of the world’s most dangerous terrorist, far more dangerous than an Osama Bin Laden (Al Qaida) or Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi (ISIS). It was the US government. Surprisingly for Israelis, the news wasn’t universally celebrated in the US. Not only were the President’s motives and the legality of his order immediately questioned, but the whole idea of violent elimination of a politically active global terrorist was raised by his political opponents. [Steve Kramer]
Israelis celebrate Soleimani’s death Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, USATitle VI of the 1964 Civil Rights Act protects people from discrimination based on race, color or national origin in programs or activities that receive federal financial assistance – but it left a loophole by not mentioning religion. As such, Jews and supporters of Israel were not protected. On December 11, U.S. President Donald Trump signed an Executive Order which includes Jews under existing Title VI protections against increasingly rampant campus aggression. [Steve Kramer]
On those reactions critical of Trump’s Executive Order Read More »
Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, Steve Kramer, USA
By Steve Kramer AMSTERDAM, Holland — It wasn’t quite winter, but it felt like it, when my wife Michal and I visited Amsterdam at the end of November. Having been to Amsterdam about 25 years ago with our young sons, it wasn’t at the top of our wish list, especially since it’s overcrowded with
Amsterdam: the good and the ugly Read More »
International, Jewish History, Steve Kramer, Travel and FoodIt’s taken a long time, but finally the US has recognized the obvious fact that Jewish communities everywhere in Israel do not violate international law. The Washington Post, which is one of many media outlets that is unfriendly to Israel, verified this fact in its reporting of Secretary of State Pompeo’s pronouncement on November 18, 2019. To wit: “… the Trump administration had determined that Israel’s West Bank settlements do not violate international law.” [Steve Kramer]
Flash: Israel is Jewish – duh! Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, USA
On a recent beautiful autumn morning we left for a short two-day holiday with friends. Our plans included the Hula Lake bird sanctuary and the Old City in Acre (called Akko in Israel). But since our friends hadn’t eaten yet, we decided to enjoy a breakfast break on our way north at the fabulous Herodian/Crusader ruins in Caesarea National Park. [Steve Kramer]
Touring the Israeli coast and Hula Nature Reserve Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, Travel and FoodWhy is it that some Jewish Americans, including J Streeters, think they know better than Israelis what will bring peace between Jews and Palestinian Arabs? It’s some sort of hubris. Israelis, by a wide margin, recognize that leaving Gaza was a huge mistake, resulting in thousands of attacks on Israelis in the south of our country (primarily but not exclusively) by terrorists allied with Iran. Why then should Israelis even contemplate allowing a similar but more existential situation in the center of Israel adjacent to our major population centers? [Steve Kramer]
With friends like J Street … Read More »
Middle East, Steve Kramer, USA
When Jordi was just ten years old, his grandfather said, “This is how we butcher a chicken,” as he demonstrated the kosher slaughtering method. Jordi’s grandfather thereby revealed that the family was Jewish, a startling surprise for a young boy in the 1990s living in Spain, whose family was ostensibly Roman Catholic like everybody else. This revelation, that they were Crypto-Jews (secret Jews), had a profound effect on Jordi, who eventually became the first rabbi in 500 years to be ordained in Spain.
New Mexico’s Crypto-Jews subject of informative tour Read More »
International, Jewish History, Jewish Religion, Steve Kramer, Travel and Food, USA