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 — The linkage here between guns and homosexuals does not refer to the killings in an Orlando gay club by a Muslim who appears to have been gay, anti-gay, and a religious fanatic. That combination presents its own puzzles, but the discussion here is about something different. This note might also […]
American guns and Israeli homosexuals Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Years ago the Kingston Trio sang to my generation about rioting in Africa, starvation in Spain, strife in Iran, drought, hatreds, and the likelihood that we’d all be blown away in a mushroom shaped cloud. The song was the Merry Minuet, released in 1959. You can go back in
Memo to Kingston Trio: World still troubled Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — You wanted a Jewish state. You got one. It comes with an army, and the army has rabbis. Much of the time they concern themselves that the food is kosher, but they also lecture the troops, give advice to all who would listen, and represent the army to outsiders who
A Jewish state with Jewish controversy Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The New Middle East isn’t the spread of equality, women’s rights, and democracy dreamed and promoted by Barack Obama, Thomas Friedman, and other politically correct westerners. It is, rather, a confused jumble of deadly conflicts among Muslims, shifting postures toward Israel, and a lack of symmetry between what is said
Many Arabs give Palestine lip service, engage with Israel Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansksy JERUSALEM — Pity our American friends. And–given the importance of the US–pity the rest of us. Friends and family have to choose between Hillary and Donald, both of whom should be in retirement homes, neither close to anything important. If someone less well connected had fiddled with the email in the manner
Neither Trump nor Clinton deserving of the White House Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Africa was in Israeli headlines this week, with the emphasis on the 40th anniversary of Entebbe and the Prime Minister’s visits to Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, and Ethiopia. It was more bombast than substance, and not all of the bombast positive. Uganda’s President repeatedly referred to the ties between his country
P.M.’s storybook African tour masks underlying issues Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — A single page in the weekend edition of Yedioth Aharonoth captures the essence of where we are. One article on the page is a rational assessment of recent violence, its decline, and concludes with the point that there is no solution, other than the ceasing of incitement among the Palestinians,
Traffic accidents, sectarian violence likely to continue Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–You don’t trust Bibi? Few do. No reason to. He’s a politician. He isn’t any different from a long line of others, including Barack Obama, Yitzhak Rabin, Shimon Peres, JFK, the Clintons, FDR, and Abe Lincoln. They all promised a lot more than they delivered. It’s inherent in the occupation. The reputations
Bibi, like many U.S. presidents, promises too much Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East, USABy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM–Route #443 is a major road from the northern area of Jerusalem down to the coast. It also traverses the Palestinian area of the West Bank, and Israel’s Supreme Court ordered it to be open to Palestinians. The IDF complied, to an extent, but not so much that we ever see a
A survey of continuing Israeli news stories Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky BILBAO, Spain — One of Israel’s attractions is its closeness to Europe. Cyprus is 30 minutes by air, Greece less than two hours, and every other country no more than a domestic flight within the US. In recent years, we’ve chosen places that tweak our cultural and historical interests. My own views
Bilbao: A place where an Israeli can relax Read More »
International, Ira Sharkansky, Travel and FoodBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Does Israel face threats to its existence?. Two former Chiefs of the IDF General Staff, who were both Ministers of Defense, and one of them a Prime Minister, have come out against the current Prime Minister with charges that he is excessive in promoting fear to the population rather than working
Israel and Netanyahu stronger than rivals Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The evil genie is out of the bottle. And there are no good ideas for a quick fix. There are too many Muslims living in western societies, supporting too many radical preachers, and reading from too many exciting and inciting web sites. The dangerous may only be a small fraction of
More needed from Muslims than expressions of regret Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle EastBy Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — The title of this column is another way of expressing the view that there is no solution anywhere on the horizon for the Israel-Palestinian conflict. We’ve recently been through the media routine that is standard after a significant incident of terror. In this case, four individuals were killed at an
By Ira Sharkansky JERUSALEM — Continuing with my previous column, any current discussion of Jerusalem ought to deal with the issues of whose city? and should it be divided? Even more basic is the issues of which Jerusalem? and when? Ancient and medieval sources tell of several expansions and contractions of what was defined as Jerusalem.
Jerusalem: A city of many boundaries Read More »
Ira Sharkansky, Middle East