Ira Sharkansky

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–The history of Israeli politics over the most recent 40 years is the rise and fall of parties claiming to represent the center, in order to do what they feel major parties cannot. We are seeing it again. Recent polls are showing a decline of Yair Lapid’s There is a Future from […]

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — On our right are religious nationalists who insist that God gave it all to us. On our left are those who claimed that we have sinned since 1967, and must withdraw from some, much, or all of the West Bank beyond the lines of 1967 in order for the Palestinians

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Shimon Shiffer is a conventional Israeli journalist-commentator, insofar as he can be counted on to sound at least a bit left of center in his criticism of the current government. He also works for Yedioth Aharonot.  Once it was the daily newspaper with the largest circulation, but has now lost that

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–One of the better responses to the ASA boycott came from Charles Krauthamer. Without using exactly these words, he calls the return of anti-Semitism the fashion of the politically correct, after a decline due to the exaggeration of the Holocaust. Jews are easy targets for a cheap shot at asserting what is

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–There ain’t much that is new under the sun. Israelis, Diaspora Jews and others who are concerned with us should have ceased hoping years ago for the kind of peace that prevails between the US and Canada, or among the countries of Western Europe. Something like the US border with Mexico might

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM –One can expect historians to quarrel as to which overseas activities of the American administration were most damaging. To be sure, some are widely viewed as successes. The reconstructions of Europe and Japan are most prominent. Israelis appreciate American support. Currently, however, it is more timely to think about the negatives

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — A dog and pony show is a performance by politicians, inspired by what happens in a circus. It involves actors speaking predictable lines, talking past one another rather than responding to one another, and finishing the performance with no expectation of anything beyond polite applause. That’s what it looked like

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Some Israeli and American realities, from the perspective of various media– First, are three items from a recent edition of Ha’aretz. One of the lead items in the Hebrew language internet edition told of plans to build a 9-story yeshiva for newly religious Jews in the problematic neighborhood of Sheikh

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–There are lessons to be learned from recent politicking about gays and lesbians, and the Kerry peace process. It’s all about smoke and mirrors, or what you see isn’t there, and is meant to satisfy by deceiving. First on gays and lesbians. There is a Future, Yair Lapid’s new party with a

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM –Meyer Lansky and Jonathan Pollard are both significant for what they say about US-Israel relations. Lansky was a gangster, a good American, and a good Zionist. He worked his underworld connections in behalf of US efforts in World War II, the movement of refugees from Europe to Israel, and arms shipments

By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM –We are now more busy than usual. Perhaps various groups of activists had been sidelined by the storm, which is still evident in piles of tree trash that block sidewalks. Whatever the cause for the pause, there were Saturday night demonstrations in behalf of legalized marijuana, or at least easier access