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Neil S. Friedman

Op-Ed: Voting And Gloating Are Over – Where Do We Go From Here?

Source: DonkeyHotey / FlickrBETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: The presidential campaign stretched out for 18 months, yet it seemed longer — a lot longer. I’ve had my fill of annoying attack ads. At least we won’t have to see those fact-skewing, derogatory commercials — until local campaigns emerge less than a

Op-Ed: America Needs Barack Obama

Source: barackobama.comBETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: For habitual readers of this column, it should come as no revelation as to who my preference is in Tuesday’s presidential election. Over the last three or four months, there’s nothing former Governor Mitt Romney or Rep. Paul Ryan did to

Op-Ed: Obscure Victim Of Twisted Justice Left His Mark

Lady Justice, atop the Fontaine de la Justice in Cudrefin, Switzerland. Source: Wikimedia. Click to enlargeBETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: A 68-year-old former Brooklyn resident died of a heart attack a few weeks ago in a New Jersey nursing home, not far from where he lived until his late teens.

Op-Ed: A Slice Of Life That’s Become Divisive

Stained glass at the Cloisters shows baby Jesus’ bris, in which some accounts say he received metzitzah b’peh. (Source: pboothe/Flickr)BETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: As soon as the New York City Department of Health (DOH) established a regulation recently to require written parental consent before a circumcision,

Op-Ed: Despite Debate Win, GOP Seeks Edge With Voter Suppression

Source: AP PhotoBETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: When Mitt Romney became the Republican’s designated presidential nominee following his victories in the spring primaries, the party’s conservative wing seemed as lukewarm about the former governor as they were four years ago for maverick Senator John McCain. In a calculated

Op-Ed: Military Stays In Step After Repeal Of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell

Source: FacebookBETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: Fifty-three weeks ago, the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” (DADT) policy, which denied homosexuals from serving openly in the armed forces without the anxiety of expulsion, was repealed. The struggle to end it lasted twice as long as the war in

Op-Ed: Springsteen Exhibit & Constitution Center Were Ideal Match

Entrance to the Bruce Springsteen exhibit at the National Constitution Center. BETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: Numerous artists and performers have been honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the nation’s highest civilian award. None of them, however, or any performer for that matter, has ever had the distinction

Op-Ed: State’s Part-Time Pols Don’t Deserve A Raise

Members of the New York State Legislature doing what they do best. Get it? Source: WikipediaBETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: A show of hands, how many of you think our state legislators deserve a pay raise? Not too many hands. Now, if they were to get a raise, how many

Op-Ed: Notes From The Couch — Conventionally Speaking

Our columnist, Neil Friedman, engages in some “armchair politics.” What armchair would be more appropriate than Archie Bunker’s? Source: ttarasiuk / Flickr BETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: After watching portions of the Republican and Democratic conventions, here are some observations: Now I can sleep soundly, knowing the incumbents, their opponents

Dirty Old Men Have Sleazy Sense of Power

Former Brooklyn Democratic Party Chairman and current Assemblyman Vito Lopez, in happier times. Photo by Aaron Short> “Politics are a labyrinth without a clue.” – John Adams BETWEEN THE LINES [/tag/between-the-lines/]: More than a year ago, Congressman Anthony Weiner resigned after he admitted taking part in virtual trysts with