The problem is that the curses are not in Yiddish but in English.

As an outsider, I find it funny. But seriously, I really dislike people hitting out at each other because of political ideology. Republicans are human beings and liberals are also human beings, but in the U.S., people are fighting over political ideology as if it was the ultimate truth.

Politics is fighting between different interest groups. In my opinion, the healthiest approach to politics is to act pragmatically and avoid ideology. But perhaps it is quite typical for the left to see their political ideas as something unquestionable and absolute. Perhaps politics is a kind of surrogate religion for them.

It is no use. In Germany circumcision is generally practised in hospitals by in the department of paediatrics surgery. But about 55% Germans, most of them not Jewish, are, against circumcision as such. There was a verdict in Cologne two months ago which forbade all forms of circumcision.

The Jewish hospital in Berlin stopped performing circumcision and the Jewish community in Germany is awaiting a clear verdict from the Parliament but it seems that there will be no legislation in favour of circumcision. Many modern Europeans call circumcision, also performed under highly modern and hygienic conditions, "mutilation of the male organ" and "child-abuse".

In Norway, Switzerland, Austria there is also debate on whether to allow circumcision or not. I think most Europeans are secularists who have no sense for religious freedom and less understanding for Jewish culture. Of course, that the verdict of Cologne arouse because of a botched circumcision of a Muslim boy, makes the case worse because many Europeans dislike Islam.

Noshie63 wrote two comments, the first one is still here but the other one disappeared, together with my response to this particular comment.

I assume someone reported our comments and it was not primarily the fault of the Forward. Actually I like the Jewish Daily Forward very much, here people who have different opinions can talk quite civilly and reasonably with each other.

While on other media the culture war has become intolerable.

Dear me, and Nashie63 was also deleted, who pointed out that the ultra-orthodox community is full of boys. I support classic liberalism but I don't think such a heavy censorship in name of progress, caring, liberalism, tolerance, open-mindedness etc. will be real representative of freedom.

I think I got censored? I've only pointed out that forbidding a certain kind of circumcision or the circumcision as such through law with the argument of caring for the well-being of the child is hypocritical as long as abortion is promoted in the same society as women's right and something positive and good.

I don't think it is offending? People are allowed and justified to have different opinions and while trying to portrait oneself as "freethinking, liberal and tolerant" but on the other hand want to suffocate voices which say things uncomfortable to one's ear is not really liberal. Or did I get it wrong?

It is an old argument but I think it counts: the liberal society which allows abortion and promotes it as the women's right to choose, has no moral authority to judge about anything. The society has lost its moral compass and all the outrage exhibited by the liberal media and legislature is nothing but hypocrisy.

There is antisemitsm both among the far-right wingers and left-wingers, whilst the leftists often disguise their anti-semitism behind hatred against Israel and question the existence right of Israel. I find the anti-semtism among the leftists to be more hideous because it is hidden behind a veil of seemingly moral righteousness. Neither do they care about historical context of the Israel-Arab conflicts. The media (liberal media) tend to show Palestinians alone as victims and never question whence the conflict came from. Most young people in Europe don''t know that it were the Arabians who started the war of 1947.

The anti-semitism of the right-wingers tend to be the old stereotype and thus be more easily detected.

In my opinion, far right and far left are not so much apart from each other. The lefties are against Capitalism and the far right winger anti-semites do resort to the stereotype of Jews who control the Wall street.

The Catholic Church condemns officially antisemiticsm and Pope John Paul II said that Jews are our elderly brothers. But as the 1/5 world populations are Catholics, one can find still quite a lot of antisemites. Among Protestants you can also find plenty of antisemites.

P.S. There is also an argument among right-winger antisemites who claim they don't hate Jews, what they hate is Zionism (and that is a synonym for Israel), so they are indeed not too far away from their counterparts among the leftist antisemites.

Perhaps because it is the Jewish Forward which is rather pro-democratic. Liberal Catholics are also opposed to Ryan, as far as I am informed.

I define myself rather a conservative Christian and I dislike the way how liberal Catholics turn religion into politics, but I recognise that charity to neighbours and among the community, is a common good among Jews and Christians, and I know that charity and care for the others roots in the Jewish religion.

I read in a conservative Catholic media a rather good article on American elections and what kind of politics Catholics should favour. It argues that neither the republican nor the democratic way is satisfying.
Here is the link: http://www.crisismagazine.com/2012/the-left-the-r...

Probably it has little to do with the stereotype you mentioned above but more with the fact that Israel is a quite young national state, whilst other nations have been cultivating their patriotism / nationalism for more than one century. But I think the attitude of secular Jews is in reality quite similar to young generations of Europeans and North Americans born after 1960. Liberal Europeans loath nationalism, and to the extreme that even being proud of one's own culture is frowned upon. I don't think this tendency is healthy. (If I am allowed to speak about this topic as someone who is not Jewish).

I despise Hitchens because of his bigotry against Catholics.