Guest Blogs

TEA TIME WITH JULIAN | A Meditation On Martha

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Over the course of the past couple weeks, the BDS (Boycott, Divest, and Sanction) movement has been a particularly hot topic on campus. From initial communications between SJP (Students for Justice in Palestine) and Martha Pollack to an uneasy session of the Student Assembly, the issue has taken center stage for many campus organizers and members of student government. The Cornell BDS movement primarily calls for Cornell University to divest from Israel, which would require a complete cessation of funding to the state. In a letter released on February 28, Martha Pollack responded to the request for divestment with a firm ‘No’. To be clear, this article is not meant to take a stance on the BDS movement or Pollack’s refusal to divest from the State of Israel.

Campus

BIWEEKLY JOKES FOR EVERYDAY FOLKS | Dialogue

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I went to my friend’s event Tuesday night, a Hillel event, titled “A Funny Thing Happened On My Way to the Middle East,” in which Joel Chasnoff spoke about his life story, and in particular, his relationship to Israel. What started as a stand up bit—typical in its delivery, ingenuity, and laugh-generating ability but atypical in its Jewish-oriented humor—turned into a serious opportunity to discuss Israel in a safe space among mostly Jewish students. I had a ball in the first half of the event, chuckling to myself, sometimes even letting out a snort. During the second half, however, I listened intently, as this was one of my first opportunities of the year to be in dialogue about Israel in a conversation that was not necessarily among friends. On the State of Israel, Jews across the globe fall along a wide spectrum, and on what Zionism means, those in the Jewish diaspora struggle to define a term upon which we can all agree.

Politics

KRAVITZ’S KORNER | Ditching The Two-State Constraint

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Part of President Donald Trump’s unorthodox approach to his presidency is his perspective on the Arab-Israeli conflict. He recently declared that the conflict may be solved in ways other than a two-state solution, bucking several decades of U.S. policy. Many groups, both inside and outside Israel, have blasted the president for his views. A two state solution may sound like a reasonable resolution to the problem since it establishes two states for two peoples. However, the realities on the ground prevent such a solution from being implemented smoothly.