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211. The Sovereign Self: Jewish Identity in Post-Modern America

Author:
Steven M. Cohen and Arnold M. Eisen
Publication Date:
05-2001
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
Molly is a physician in her forties who lives in suburban Boston: thoughtful, soft-spoken, and extremely articulate—reason enough to take careful note of what she has to say about the formative experiences which led to her current commitments as a Jew. There is another reason as well: because the key words in this passage from our conversation, "I remember," are repeated no less than three times. What Molly and the other Jews we interviewed remember of their Jewish journeys, and—more importantly— how they remember it, provide the clues to a new sort of Jewish self emerging in the United States in recent decades.
Topic:
Security, Religion, and Sovereignty
Political Geography:
America, Middle East, and Arabia

212. Jewish Life in Ukraine at the Dawn of the Twenty-First Century: Part One

Author:
Betsy Gidwitz
Publication Date:
04-2001
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
Ukraine is a country in transition between a Soviet past and an uncertain future. Since declaring independence in 1991 at the time of the collapse of the Soviet Union, Ukraine has provided cause for both hope and despair. On the positive side, it has disarmed its nuclear capacity and is ethnically stable. Its large minority Russian population, 23 percent of Ukraine's total of 49.5 million inhabitants and concentrated in the eastern part of the country adjacent to a long border with Russia, remains calm. Although both Ukrainian and Russian extremists express various grievances, and other ethnic groups, most notably Jews, encounter episodic bigotry that is ignored by the state, the Ukrainian government itself has refrained from inciting ethnic chauvinism.
Topic:
Security and Religion
Political Geography:
Ukraine, Middle East, Eastern Europe, and Arabia

213. Failure of Perception and Self-Deception: Israel's Quest for Peace in the Context of Related Historical Cases

Author:
Joel S. Fishman
Publication Date:
03-2001
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
An examination of the historical record reveals many examples of failures of perception, and of leaders and governments refusing to integrate compelling information of existential importance. Taking account of new information and responding to changing circumstances is vital to man's relationship with his environment. When a dysfunction in the process of absorbing important new knowledge and correcting mistakes occurs, the faculty of rational judgment may be fatefully impaired. While, collectively, the attitude of a society is the sum of those of individuals, occasionally, the perception of a single individual in an influential position may be sufficient to determine a government's policy.
Topic:
Security, Environment, Government, and Religion
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, and Arabia

214. Apocalyptic Fears Now; Unforeseen Risks Tomorrow: Israel's Poorly Predicted Future

Author:
Manfred Gerstenfeld
Publication Date:
03-2001
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
After seven years of the peace process, catastrophic remarks about the end of the State of Israel are much more frequent than they were before the Oslo agreements. Judaism has a long tradition of religious apocalyptic thought; in the secular end-of-days fantasies of the last few months, however, no salvation is offered the community.
Topic:
Security and Religion
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, and Arabia

215. The Defense Monitor: Fatally Flawed? U.S. Policy Toward Failed States

Author:
Rachel Stohl, Michael Stohl, and Matthew Lewis
Publication Date:
10-2001
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Center for Defense Information
Abstract:
The Events Of Sept. 11 may prove, as so many have claimed in their immediate aftermath, to be a true watershed in international relations and for the lives of American citizens. However, there can be no doubt that the events changed the priorities of U.S. President George W. Bush, and challenged the approach to international relations that characterized the first nine months of the new administration. To that end, the current security environment will have significant impacts on the persisting problem of failed and failing states.
Topic:
Religion and Terrorism
Political Geography:
Arabia

216. American Evenhandedness in the Mideast Peace Process: Lessons From Camp David II and the Al-Aqsa Intifada

Author:
Saul Singer
Publication Date:
12-2000
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
Ask Israelis or Arabs to characterize the U.S.-Israel relationship and most, particularly on the Arab side, will argue that the picture is one of unwavering support for the Jewish state. Indeed, the outgoing Clinton administration has been widely perceived and labeled as the closest to Israel in the history of the U.S.-Israel relationship. Though the ties between the U.S. and Israel are indeed close, deep, and institutionalized, a closer examination reveals a constant tension between support for Israel and "evenhandedness" between Israel and the Arab world.
Topic:
Security and Religion
Political Geography:
United States, America, Middle East, Israel, and Arabia

217. The "Post-Secular" Era

Author:
Eliezer Schweid
Publication Date:
10-2000
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
With the completion of the process of secularization within the Jewish people, it is now clear that secularism is no substitute for religion. Despite the influence of materialism and the unprecedented control of man over nature and over himself, the need for religion has intensified due to continuing moral, social, and spiritual-existential problems and the profound human need for a connection with the sources, and for continuity and permanence. The time has come for the representatives of religious and secularist movements to begin a substantive dialogue that will enable creative life together.
Topic:
Security and Religion
Political Geography:
Middle East and Arabia

218. Interpretations of Jewish Tradition on Democracy, Land, and Peace

Author:
Gerald M. Steinberg
Publication Date:
10-2000
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
During the past twenty years, beginning with the Israeli-Egyptian disengagement talks following the 1973 war, the tension between secular and religious perspectives on the Middle East peace process and the "land for peace" formula has grown steadily.
Topic:
Security and Religion
Political Geography:
Middle East, Israel, Arabia, and Egypt

219. The Emerging Threat of Iraq and the Crisis of Global Security

Author:
Richard Butler
Publication Date:
09-2000
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
Ten years ago the UN Security Council imposed upon Iraq some very specific requirements for disarmament. After Iraq had been expelled from Kuwait, the Council decided unanimously that Iraq may not have nuclear, chemical, or biological weapons; or missiles which could fly beyond 150 km. The Security Council's decisions were taken with the full authority of international law.
Topic:
Security, International Law, Religion, and United Nations
Political Geography:
Iraq, Middle East, Kuwait, and Arabia

220. The Role of Islam in Contemporary South East Asian Politics

Author:
Colin Rubenstein
Publication Date:
08-2000
Content Type:
Policy Brief
Institution:
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs
Abstract:
The political influence of Islam is increasing in South East Asia. While the collapse of the Soviet Union and the Communist bloc have contributed to the decline of communism as a revolutionary political force in the region, religious and ethnic issues are now assuming renewed and increasing significance. Religious divisions based on Islam have exacerbated ethnic differences, and some religiously-oriented groups are engaging in violent and extreme acts that pose a potentially serious long-term threat to stability in the region.
Topic:
Security, Islam, Politics, and Religion
Political Geography:
Middle East, Soviet Union, Arabia, and Southeast Asia