20 Comments

Kahn writes "The FBI raids the homes of Americans with connections to Russian state media in an alleged attempt to head off Russian election interference."

And you don't think the FBI raided the homes of Soviet fellow travelers back in the day?

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Of course, and is roundly condemned in this era.

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Some of it. Ethyl Rosenberg was innocent. McCarthy’s claims were unsubstantiated, as were many of those blacklisted for being Russian fellow travelers when all they had done was participate in leftist politics in the thirties. But others really were fellow travelers or even spies for the Russians like Julius Rosenberg. What happened to them was appropriate.

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As I'm from Portugal, and the news that we get (TV and newspapers here in Portugal pay a lot of attention to the US Elections), what strikes me most is the number of times Biden's name is mentioned, as well as that of his predecessors, such as Obama or Clinton. I think this is a bad communication policy, as it takes the focus away from Kamala, who has yet to present a major strategic plan for the country, other than winning the elections against Trump

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Than you for the round up. So grim. I am interested in what will happen in the region should Israel does become a failed state within the next few years. Who will replace Netanyahu and his political power base ? I hope that I am wrong but Netanyahu’s bizarre and cruel decision to force the Hasidic Jewish community into military service going against their deeply held religious convictions, is what is finally going to lead to his downfall as well as potential civil conflict within Israel itself.

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It's not Bibi doing that, it's the courts. And it's the right decision. The hasidics are a parasitic part of Israel with a lot of special privileges. It's time to pare all of those back and treat them the same as anybody else

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You have not even bothered to try to understand why the Jewish Hasidic faith can not wage war for a political Israeli state. Their pacifism comes from their religious understanding of Israel as a spiritual ideal that ceases to exist if embodied. To force them to fight makes them complicit in total denial of their faith; equivalent to forcing a Christian to spit on the Cross of Calvary. This action is not treating them the same as everybody else it is merely condemning them to exile from Israel or self immolation.

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It's not that I don't understand it. I'm not interested in it.

If their faith is structured so they get all the benefits of a society while hearing none of the costs, it's dumb to humour that. The movement is producing huge numbers of useless people. Shinui was right to want to cut their privileges.

They're not a priestly caste that should have a different set of rules, with special financial support and special schools and all that. If a rule applies to Israelis in general, it should apply to them. Either end universal conscription or end their carve-out. The status quo is unjust.

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I agree with ending their carve-out, but the IDF has to meet them part way by changing army jargon to eliminate profanity and creating conditions of service for Haredi soldiers that would minimize their contact with women.

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That's unacceptable. Modern militaries have both genders, and charedi men and women will have to get used to it when they serve in the IDF.

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Unacceptable to whom? There is already a Haredi regiment that is isolated from the rest of the IDF and its secular culture, though there have been disciplinary problems (most of its members are Haredi misfits/ne'er-do-wells). Haredi women serving is not under consideration; Haredi unmarried young women and their parents will not consider a prospective groom who has frequent contact with women and/or has ongoing exposure to coarse language and thoughts. To include Haredi recruits a cultural divide must be bridged.

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Love these Commentators.

At a Convention, all the world is definitely a stage. I thought the major speeches were very effective theatre. In terms of winning, the dispositive factor may well be the direction of the economy, which will be best captured by what happens on the stock market over the next sixty days. Sixty per cent of Americans own stocks.

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Not being an insurrectionist is a heck of a qualification.

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Thought-provoking commentary as usual. Many thanks. But nothing about the new batch of Trump Digital Trading Card NFTs? Should we be buying?

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For a broader view of Israeli current events add The Times of Israel and its podcasts to balance the English edition of Ha’aretz.

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