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May 13, 2013

Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Why the giving of the document that would permanently change the world could only be done in desolation

David G. Savage: Church-state, literally? Supreme Court weighing public school graduation in a church

Emily Alpert: Recession dragged down birth rates for less-educated women
Morgan Housel: The deep downside of home ownership

Peter Teffer: Will Dutch police soon be stalking cybercriminals on your computer?

Heidi McIndoo, M.S., R.D.: Meatless 'meat' can have its own set of problems

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: Celebrate! This must-try appetizer is delicate yet has depth of flavor: Corn-Leek Cakes with Caviar, Smoked Salmon and Creme Fraiche

May 10, 2013

Rabbi Berel Wein: Be all that you should be

Caroline B. Glick: The dirty little secret about Israel's Arabs

Mona Charen: Hawking's Moral Calculus: The man and the movement he embraces
Morgan Housel: The biggest retirement myth ever told

Sandi Doughton: Eyes may provide new insight into brain problems

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : The Great Gatsby's Jewish Ties; Jews in the "Time 100 list" List; People's Most Beautiful Women

The Kosher Gourmet by Linda Gassenheimer: A sweet-hot meal: Pear salsa spices up salmon

May 8, 2013

Peter Ford: Why China is welcoming both Israel's Netanyahu and Palestinians' Abbas

Warren Richey: Obama administration quietly backs out of appeal over new contraceptive mandate

Fred Weir: At Kerry-Putin meeting, US-Russia relations thaw --- a tad
Amanda Paulson: Study reveals sad truths about community colleges

Harvard Health Letters: Evidence weak that zinc, echinacea are beneficial

The Kosher Gourmet by Leela Cyd Ross : Almost too pretty to eat, this colorful salad with Sicilian inspiration will tickle the taste buds and delight your visual sensibility

May 6, 2013

Edmund Sanders and Patrick J. McDonnell: Think Israel's objective in Syria is to weaken Assad or embolden the rebels? Think again

Brian Bennett: Israeli airstrikes may show weakness in Syrian defense

Michael Ollove: Millions of ex-felons, parolees and those on probation are about to be entitled to tax-payer paid health coverage
Karen Kaplan: Most men can skip PSA test for prostate cancer, urologists say

Kimberly Lankford: How to track down a lost life insurance policy

Dream of Mars exploration achievable, experts say

The Kosher Gourmet by Susan M. Selasky: EGGPLANT WRAPS are an easy, sumptuous and scrumptious meal

May 3, 2013

Rabbi Nathan Lopes Cardozo: Human Courage and the Unavoidable, Disturbing Text

Steven Emerson: Attorney General Fights CAIR in Court, Lauds it in Public

Mediterranean diet helps beat dementia: study
Harvard Health Letters: When to be screened for a hearing problem

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom : Iron Man's Jewish Connections; Marc Maron's New TV Show; Martin Landau Grows Up with Israel; Shalom, Allan Arbus

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: A sweet surprise for Mother's Day dessert

May 1, 2013

Jonathan Rosenblum: An Improbable Journey to Orthodoxy

Jonathan Tobin: Blame Obama, Not Israel for Syria Push

Kids, kittens the Same? With employee perks at struggling Internet pioneer Yahoo! it's hard to tell
Halena M. Gazelka, M.D.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: What you need to know about implanted pain relief devices

Sandy Kleffman: Artificial kidney offers hope to patients tethered to a dialysis machine

Jessica Shugart: When it comes to math, MRIs may be better than IQs

The Kosher Gourmet by Mario Batali: The celebrated chef on how high-maintenance ASPARAGUS RISOTTO need not be

April 29, 2013

Roy Gutman: Poland's new Jewish museum celebrates life, doesn't revisit Holocaust

Mark Clayton: Terrorism in America: Is US missing a chance to learn from failed plots?

Kim Murphy: Boston Bomber's 'Svengali' Revealed
Morgan Housel: He's rich, smart and old: Listen to him

Thomas Salinas, D.D.S.: Mayo Clinic Medical Edge: The safety of amalgam fillings

Harvard Health Letters: Tomatoes and stroke protection

Pete Spotts: Tiny satellites + cellphones = cheaper 'eyes in the sky' for NASA

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: Swing into spring with lemon cream pie

April 26, 2013

Rabbi Abraham J. Twerski: The world is a mirror

Caroline B. Glick: Time to confront Obama

Clifford D. May: Defense in the Age of Jihadist Terrorism
Kimberly Lankford: New strategies ease pain of paying for long-term care insurance

Howard LeWine, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Too much ibuprofen?

Sharon Palmer, R.D.: How to feel your best -- with plenty of energy, a healthy weight and optimal mental and physical function -- without driving yourself batty

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Jewish Major Leaguers, 2013; New Movies and Comedy Show; Shalom, 'Lumpy' (Leave it to Beaver)

The Kosher Gourmet by Emily Ho : A bright and cheerful salad to herald the warmer months ahead

April 24, 2013

Steven Emerson: Boston Bomber Exposes Islamist Secret

Morgan Housel Admit it: No one has any idea what's going on
Harvard Health Letters: Can you get headaches from headache medication?

Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D.: How to easily get more Omega-3s in your diet

Melissa Healy: Pot in a pill: All the pain relief without the smoke

The Kosher Gourmet by Susan Russo: Chipotle Chili Butternut Squash Soup is bold, zesty, hot

April 22, 2013

Ken Dilanian: Counterterrorism's future is unclear

US man departing country arrested on terror charges
Barbara Williams: An unorthodox but growing treatment in a 9-year-old's battle against cancer

P.J. Skerrett, M.D.: How to recognize a good whole grain product

Jewz in the Newz by Nate Bloom: Teen actor Jonah Bobo in New Flick: Hunky James Wolk on Mad Men; Erich Segal's Daughter Writes Prize-Winning Jewish Novel

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: 'Noodles,' Asian style is a carb sub, sure. But they are also amazingly delicious and colorful

April 19, 2013

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: When violence seems the only answer

Caroline B. Glick: Why Obama's visit to Israel had no impact on public opinion or government policy

Morgan Housel: Gold collapse: The start of something big?
Harvard Health Letters: Can you die of a broken heart?

Pete Spotts: Livable super-Earths? Two candidates among Kepler's latest finds

Nora Schultz: Oxytocin helps beat booze cravings

The Kosher Gourmet by Carole Kotkin: Middle Eastern cuisine meets Italian delicious with this lentil and eggplant pastitsio

April 17, 2013

Shira Rubin: Too much of a good thing? 'Palestinians' realize downside of foreign aid boom

Geoffrey Mohan: Can computers decode dreams? Researchers take a first step

Morgan Housel: BAD NEWS: EVERYONE IS RIGHT!
Brierley Wright, M.S., R.D.: 6 heart-healthy eating tips help cut saturated fat but not taste

Michael Craig Miller, M.D.: Ask the Harvard Experts: Told your child has sensory processing disorder? Seek a second opinion

The Kosher Gourmet by Diane Rossen Worthington: Corn and Curry Add Zing to Chilled Soup

April 15, 2013

Rabbi Yonason Goldson: The Death of Education?

Kristen Chick: Egyptian Christians respond with harsh words to attack -- rocks, Molotov cocktails, and gunfire -- against main cathedral

Marcy Darnovsky and Karuna Jaggar: High Court to decide if you should own your DNA
Howard LaFranchi: US bracing for more Russian blowback after taking action against 18 more human rights violators

Kristin Ohlson : The loneliest fight

The Kosher Gourmet by Dana Velden: A tasty, rich dish that hints at spring's arrival while still anchored in a favorite winter staple


Jewish World Review Nov. 14, 2005 / 12 Mar-Cheshvan, 5766

Just being the alternative could give Dems a win

By Robert Robb

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http://www.JewishWorldReview.com | Democrats are clearly licking their chops in anticipation of the 2006 election.

Is this justified or self-delusional? Probably a bit of both.

The Republicans are certainly in trouble and in disarray. Public approval ratings for President Bush are low. Too much is being read into the recent state and local elections, but they were unquestionably much better news for Democrats than for Republicans.

Nor are the Republicans likely to get their act together and improve their prospects prior to the 2006 election.

In Iraq, Bush is engaged in a mission — an unlimited military engagement in another country — that makes Americans uncomfortable. Stability in Iraq, a reduction in the troops stationed there and a clear sense that the end of the commitment was in sight would undoubtedly improve the public's view of Bush's leadership. But that requires a lot of change in that country in a short period of time. Chances are the next election will occur with the duration and extent of the U.S. engagement still uncertain, and with the Bush administration defending that ambiguity as a strategic necessity.

The economy is performing well, even bordering on remarkable given the shocks — recession, 9/11, natural disasters — it has sustained. The Gross Domestic Product has now expanded at a rate of more than 3 percent for eight quarters in a row, and often at a 4 percent to a 4.5 percent clip.

That's the longest stretch of such high growth since World War II. Ordinarily the party in charge during such a growth spurt would be given political credit, irrespective of whether actually deserved. But that's not occurring now.

Democrats say it's because incomes aren't growing. But after-tax incomes are growing, and real wages are beginning to.

Chances are it's more a sense of vulnerability resulting from much faster-paced economic change. As much as our economy is built on entrepreneurial energy, many people would trade some reward for enhanced security. Economic security is becoming increasingly scarce even in good times.

But the major reason Republicans are unlikely to recover before the 2006 election is because they have lost their principles and their nerve.

Spending has increased twice as fast under consolidated Republican rule as it did during the divided government days of Bill Clinton. The current attempts by Republicans to reduce spending growth are pathetic. The Senate bill would cut a $2.5 trillion budget by just $7 billion a year. The House is trying to up that to $10 billion. But the votes are difficult to come by.

Moreover, the cuts are politically ham-handed, falling almost exclusively on social programs and leaving less defensible corporate welfare spending untouched.

There's a case to be made that Republican tax cuts helped restart and sustain the economy. But congressional Republicans are getting cold feet about extending the cuts, much less making them permanent.

There's a tendency for those who perceive themselves to be in trouble in politics to try to reduce the grounds for criticism, a bid for support in the legendary but elusive political center. And there's a whole lot of ducking going on among congressional Republicans these days.

But that's not the way Republicans win elections. Republicans win elections by expanding and motivating their base. Social conservatives have usually been a volatile factor for Republicans. Economic conservatives may be becoming such.

Can Democrats capitalize? There's a heated debate going on in national Democratic circles over whether simply beating up the Republicans is sufficient, or whether Democrats have to offer an alternative governing agenda, as Republicans did in 1994 with the Contract with America.

The former is certainly easier than the latter. There's something in the political beast that wants not only to defeat the opponent, but to destroy him. And it sometimes leads to misdirection.

Take the Iraq war. If Democrats kept to insisting that there should be a flexible timetable for withdrawing American troops, that would resonate with the discomfit the body politic is feeling about the current policy.

Instead, they distract attention from the policy remedy by incessantly carping that Bush lied to get the country into war. That's a difficult claim to maintain, given that the Bush administration's assessment of Saddam's capabilities did not materially differ from that of the Clinton administration, of other intelligence services around the world, or of senior Democrats at the time the decision for war was made. Democrats will have an agenda when they have a new presidential candidate in 2008. Cobbling one together that moves beyond pabulum in the interim will be difficult.

The Democrats are now largely a protectionist party and they want to roll back the Bush tax cuts for the relatively affluent. Beyond that, they would have difficulty prioritizing a governing agenda. In particular, there are deep fractures in the party over foreign policy, the use of military power and fighting terrorism that shared hated and distrust of Bush have papered over.

The real problem for Democrats, however, is in the numbers. Absent a political tidal wave election such as 1994, there does not seem to be enough seats in play for them to take control of either the Senate or the House.

In the Senate, Democrats need to pick up six seats to gain control. There are currently five open seats without an incumbent running, but three of them are currently held by Democrats and a fourth belongs to an independent who caucuses with them. There are maybe seven additional seats that are likely to be competitive, and they are now primarily held by Republicans. There are a handful of other races that one party or the other hopes to make competitive.

In the House, Democrats have to win 16 new seats to take over. There are 21 open seats at this point, but only four are thought to be truly competitive between the parties. National political handicappers believe that there are somewhere around 35 congressional districts in play, but Democrats are defending in about a third of them.

In short, to take control of either body, Democrats probably need a national tidal wave election such as 1994, in which they pretty much sweep the competitive races and win a few complete surprises as well.

That may be developing. The American people sometimes just get tired of those governing them and want a change. I sense that such a sentiment is beginning to congeal about President Bush and Republican control of Congress.

Sometimes in politics, it's enough to just be the other guy.

Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in in the media and Washington consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.

JWR contributor Robert Robb is a columnist for The Arizona Republic. Comment by clicking here.

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