General Topics

Zealotry

Nowadays, aggression seems to be the norm rather than the exception. Especially when it comes to political issues and identities. The aspect of aggression I dislike most is zealotry. It is often excused as simply the result of passionate commitment. And commitment sometimes is very necessary. But in practice, it is too often no more than thuggery. There is just…

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Kopul Rosen and The Eichmann Trial

A few weeks ago, I mentioned the Netflix film “The Trial of Adolph Eichmann” and a brief clip of my late father Kopul Rosen speaking in a BBC panel that appeared in it. The clip was of a short response my father gave to the question of whether the trial might increase anti-Semitism, to which he reacted with characteristic scorn. …

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Older or Wiser?

There is an expression “There is no fool like an old fool.” I have often wondered whether this is a comment on stupidity or old age. And please don’t tell me it’s not woke to talk about old anything. The Torah contains two laws about old age. “You should rise before an old man Sayva  and honor a Zaken(Leviticus 19:32).” Sayva ( is often translated…

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Who Was Sanballat?

Does this name mean anything to you? He is mentioned in the Bible as someone who tried desperately to prevent the Judeans from rebuilding the Temple in Jerusalem.  A quick historical recap. The Assyrian King Sargon the 2nd conquered the Northern Kingdom of Israel in 722 BCE. As was his policy, he exiled most of the pagan ten northern tribes to…

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Robespierre and Saadyah

Robespierre  (1758 –1794) was one of the most controversial figures of the French Revolution. He rose from obscurity to play an important part in the fall of the French Monarchy. In the chaos that followed, France was torn apart by civil strife, conflicting ideologies on the left and the right, a reign of terror with thousands guillotined, civil war, famine, and the…

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