Ira Sharkansky is professor emeritus of political science and public administration at Hebrew University.
His books, which are available on Amazon, include:
*Alternative federal solutions to the problem of the administered territories
*Ambiguity, Coping, and Governance: Israeli Experiences in Politics, Religion, and Policymaking
*Ancient and Modern Israel: An Exploration of Political Parallels
*Coping with Terror: An Israeli Perspective
* Governing Israel: Chosen People, Promised Land and Prophetic Tradition
*Governing Jerusalem: Again on the World’s Agenda
* Israel and its Bible: A Political Analysis
* Maligned States: policy accomplishments, problems and opportunities
* Policy Analysis in Political Science
* Policy and Politics in American Governments
* Policy Making in Israel: Routines for Simple Problems and Coping with the Complex
* Politics and Planning in the Holy City
* Politics and Policymaking in Search of Simplicity
* Public Administration: Agencies, Policies, and Politics
* Public Administration Policy Making in Government Agencies
* Public Administration (2nd Edition): Policy Making in Government Agencies
* Regionalism in American Politics
* Rituals of Conflict: Religion, Politics, and Public Policy in Israel
* Spending in the American States
* The Policy Predicament: Making and Implementing Public Policy
* The Political Economy of Israel
* The Politics of Religion and the Religion of Politics
*The Politics of Taxing and Spending
* The Routines of Politics
* The United States: A Study of a Developing Country
* The United States Revisited: A Study of a Still Developing Country
* Urban Politics and Public Policy [Robert Lineberry]
* What Makes Israel Tick: How Domestic Policy-Makers Cope with Restraints
* Wither the State: Politics and Public Enterprise in Three Countries
By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — We’re all on the borders of cultures. We express the condition by where we travel, with whom we deal, and how we deal with those who are different from ourselves. Staying close to home and minding our own business are conventional ways of dealing with strangers, some of whom may […]
Americans, Israelis living on borders of culture Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Recent news hereabouts has been boring. Not perhaps to those directly involved, but compared to what is more typical of this contested land in a chaotic region. Among the top stories Traffic accidents Olympic results, and stories of athletes picked up by the Brazilian police for actions off the field
Israeli news lately has been routine Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The New York Times has published an exceptionally long article about the collapse of the Middle East, the chaos of what used to be functioning governments, the misery and streams of refugees that it has produced. It’s good journalism, telling its story through the eyes of individuals interviewed over the course
NY Times misses key factors in Mideast analysis Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — What to do? Not much of anything. This is a time for watching and waiting. The biggest crap shoot is in the United States. Currently it seems wisest to bet the nickel on Hillary, and a dime–or even a quarter–that the stay-at-homes will have more votes than any candidate. If
Watchful waiting around the world Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — There are a lot of unhappy Americans, facing what seems like a choice between Ms Sleaze and Mr Crazy. The latest revelations might be Clinton sleaze rather than Hillary sleaze. They concern a donor to the Clinton Foundation who got access to the US Ambassador to a country he was interested
Abstentions may ‘win’ U.S. election Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Is the world richest, and one of its most populous countries falling apart? The run of Presidents from Jimmy Carter (some might say Richard Nixon) through whoever wins in November might suggest something like that. However, an earlier run from Harding (some would say from Wilson’s second term or from Taft)
An ex-pat’s reflections on U.S. democracy Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Politics isn’t everything. There’s also sport. Anyone who’s visited Rome’s Coliseum, or the remains of Greek amphitheaters around the Mediterranean, knows that it’s capacity to divert has been with us for a long time. We’ve moved beyond the blood sport of the gladiators. Boxing is losing its popularity. Dog fighting
The high cost of sports Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Sports & CompetitionsBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — It isn’t easy assessing American politics. Some may say that it’s impossible from overseas. It is currently difficult for stay-at-home Americans. Whether the situation is unique or just unusual is also hard to say. However, substantial numbers of Americans (60 percent of each party by one survey) are unhappy with
Some dynamics of the Clinton v. Trump race Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM –Israel may be one of the noisiest of democracies. There’s a large variety of views expressed in families of many different origins, media providing different views of news and commentary in both traditional and Internet varieties, as well as politicians, Knesset Members, government personnel, and other activists who span a wide
Israel’s right, left tussle over control of textbooks, media Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, Science, Medicine, & Education, Theatre, Film & BroadcastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — What has caused the mess we’re in? Who knows? First problem: each of us defines the mess in a different way. Is it Islam, Obama, Hillary, Donald, Bibi, overpopulation, or global warming? Maybe it’s the Jews or the Palestinians. Some think that if one or the other, or both were
Causality in world affairs? Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The preacher, i.e.. Kohelet,said in the Book of Ecclesiastes, that is as much Greek as Judaic in its philosophy, מַה-שֶּׁהָיָה הוּא שֶׁיִּהְיֶה וּמַה-שֶּׁנַּעֲשָׂה הוּא שֶׁיֵּעָשֶׂה וְאֵין כָּל-חָדָשׁ תַּחַת הַשָּׁמֶשׁ. What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun.
World politics: We’ve been down this road before Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — We can’t finish a discussion of commotions surrounding the IDF with yesterday’s column about a Sergeant and a General awaiting judgment. There is also a multi-pronged public fury surrounding the most recent operation in Gaza, whose second anniversary was recently commemorated at the military cemetery with speeches by the President, the
High cost of bringing a soldier’s body back to Israel Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — These are not good days for the IDF. All seems well on matters of intelligence and operations, but two of its soldiers are in the headlines. One young man is on trial for the unnecessary killing of a Palestinian, already inert and seemingly near death. A decorated soldier, with the
The IDF has a double dose of tsuris Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Prime Minister Netanyahu’s recent visit to Africa was an opportunity for bombast from all sides. Both Israelis and Africans spoke beyond what seemed reasonable about the importance of the trip and one another’s countries. What was arguably the height came from the Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, welcoming Netanyahu to the
Netanyahu meets the Trump of Uganda Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USA