Manfred Gerstenfeld on Deutsche Zustände, edited by Wilhelm Heitmeyer
Jewish Political Studies Review 18:1-2 (Spring 2006) This series of books analyzes issues in Germany related to “group-targeted misanthropy” (GMF).1 This term includes categories such as racism, anti-Semitism, hatred of foreigners, homeless, homosexuals, and Muslims, as well as sexism. Though anti-Semitism is mentioned in the first two books as well, it is a major topic […]
Our Cousins “Down Under” Jews and Australian Politics edited by Geoffrey Brahm Levey and Philip Mendes
Geoffrey Brahm Levy, senior lecturer in politics and international relations and coordinator of the Jewish Studies Program at the University of New South Wales in Sydney, Australia, and Philip Mendes, senior lecturer in social policy and community development at Monash University in Melbourne, have compiled thirteen essays that explore the politics of today’s Australian Jewish community. Although the book makes almost no mention of Australian Jews’ patterns of religious identity and observance, it does provide a multifaceted picture of the group’s political activities and agendas, thereby illuminating a little-known aspect of a Jewish community that is now the tenth largest in the world.
American Jewry at the Crossroads American Jewry’s Challenge: Conversations Confronting the Twenty-First Century by Manfred Gerstenfeld
The dynamics of the American Jewish community are constantly changing along with the issues being confronted both by the broader American society and by the Jewish community itself. To take a snapshot of the community, as Jonathan Sarna points out in his introduction to this book, and begin to understand what is happening at a particular time is useful and important. It provides the opportunity to view both the Jewish community and American society from a special vantage point.
Decades of Dutch Debate on Releasing World War II Criminals De Drie van Breda: Duitse oorlogsmisdadigers in Nederlandse gevangenschap 1945-1989 by Hinke Piersma
Excessive tolerance for intolerance has been a major characteristic of the Netherlands in the past decades. A core element of this “pseudohumanism” is the emphasis on the needs and “human rights” of criminals, often at the expense of their victims.
The Reconstitution of Postwar German Jewry – Jews in Post-Holocaust Germany 1945-1953 by Jay Howard Geller, Cambridge University Press, 2005, 330 pp.
In April 2005, the sixtieth anniversary of the liberation of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp was officially commemorated. Paul Spiegel, chairman of the Central Council of Jews in Germany, praised the Jews who had stayed in Germany after the Holocaust. He stated that, despite inner doubts and strong criticism from Jews abroad, they had dared to rebuild Jewish communities there. He added that one should remember them on this day with great gratitude and respect.
The Scandals at Lyon III – Le dossier Lyon III by Henri Rousso
For decades France has been struggling with the legacy of the war years and its responsibility for the fate of its Jews, who were first victims of racist legislation and then deported en masse with the active participation of French authorities and police. It took nearly fifty years before a French president, Jacques Chirac, formally acknowledged responsibility in the name of the Republic. Many high-ranking civil servants managed successfully for many years to avoid being brought to justice for crimes committed at that time. Coincidentally or not, a significant number of right- wing politicians and academics kept openly expressing doubts about the Holocaust and the existence of the gas chambers and are still doing so today.
Arguing from the Constitution – The Case for Sovereignty: Why the World Should Welcome American Independence by Jeremy Rabkin, AEI Press, 2004, 255 pp.
In this book Rabkin, who teaches international law and American constitutional history at Cornell University, elaborates further on Why Sovereignty Matters, an essay of his published in 1998 by the American Enterprise Institute (AEI). Rabkin is a staunch supporter of American sovereignty, and in this articulate, well-documented work he offers compelling arguments for resisting attempts to restrict the prerogatives of that sovereignty.
The Oslo War – La Guerre d’Oslo, by Joel Fishman and Efraim Karsh, Editions de Passy, 257 pp. (French)
In La Guerre d’Oslo (The Oslo War),[1] Joel Fishman and Efraim Karsh have written an indispensable book. On first impression its title sounds provocative, but to the extent that the authors reveal the reality of the “Oslo process,” it is accurate. Far from arbitrarily presenting a theory, Fishman and Karsh, both researchers and historians, explain and prove their interpretations by using hard evidence, and reach important conclusions. They have shown that for the cynical Palestinian leadership, what diplomats and most of Western public opinion wishfully described as the “peace process” represented nothing more than an opportunity to wage war within the framework of “protracted conflict.” This leadership has followed a previously articulated strategy and implemented it over the past four decades with determination and coherence, despite, or rather because of, the appearance they projected.
Dilemmas of Israeli Policy After the Hamas Victory: From Disengagement to Consolidation?
Hamas’ rise is likely to set back the "peace process" for years. Why should Hamas moderate in office, when its ideology is its raison d’etre? The Taliban, Iranian, Saddam and Assad regimes did not; neither did Arafat.
The Basis of the U.S.-Israel Alliance – An Israeli Response to the Mearsheimer-Walt Assault
On December 27, 1962, President John F. Kennedy told Israeli Foreign Minister Golda Meir: “The United States has a special relationship with Israel in the Middle East really comparable only to what it has with Britain over a wide range of world affairs.”
The Improvement in Israeli-South Korean Relations
After a brief period of nonalignment following its establishment in 1948, Israel supported the United States, the United Nations, and South Korea during the 1950-1953 Korean War. In 1962 Israel and South Korea established full diplomatic relations, but in 1978 Israel closed its embassy in Seoul for budgetary reasons.
The Politics of “Transmigration”: Why Jewish Refugees had to Leave Switzerland from 1944 to 1954
The effort to prevent Jewish immigration was central to the Swiss authorities long before the rise of Nazism in Germany and the resultant waves of refugees who reached the Swiss borders in the 1930s and 1940s. Special regulations were enacted to prevent "foreign infiltration," making it increasingly difficult for Jews to settle in Switzerland. Instead, the aim of Swiss policy was "transmigration" or onward migration; permanent asylum was to be denied.
Collective Psychological Processes in Anti-Semitism
Racism and anti-Semitism are highly complex human phenomena, having multiple causes including psychological ones. The latter are of paramount importance for understanding anti-Semitism. Over the past few decades, the focus of the psychoanalytic study of anti-Semitism has gradually shifted from the individual to the group.
Pope John Paul II and the Jews: An Evaluation
Many Jews admired the late Pope John Paul II but paid little attention to the content of his message. A deeper analysis of his statements offers a better understanding. In his encyclical "Dominum et Vivificantem" of 1986, he seemed to revive the accusation of deicide. Visiting Auschwitz in 1979, he called it "the Golgotha of the modern world" and spoke of "six million Poles who lost their lives during the war."
Teaching Morality in Armed Conflict: The Israel Defense Forces Model
Teaching morality and ethics during armed conflict to combat units presents unique challenges to both military educators and commanders. Aspects of this complex issue include the prevailing military culture, the character of the military training, and the nontraditional combat zone. Armies regard the video as the most developed model for training soldiers about morality in armed conflict.
