Stephen M. Flatow, at The Blogs

Jun 2, 2026, 7:58 PM

Kennedy Feared Embarrassing the Presidency. Does Trump?

John F. Kennedy understood something that Donald Trump still has not learned. Before agreeing to let filmmaker Robert Drew’s camera crew follow him for what became Crisis: Behind a Presidential Commitment, Kennedy reportedly set down a condition: “If you embarrass the presidency, you’re out. If...

May 29, 2026, 6:47 PM

When the Mayor Refuses to March With the Jews

New York’s mayor does not have to agree with every Israeli government policy to march in the Israel Day Parade. But when he refuses to stand with Jewish New Yorkers at one of their most visible public celebrations, he confirms exactly what many in the...

May 20, 2026, 8:11 PM

In Case You Missed It, Israel Eliminated a Hamas Leader

In case you missed it, Israel eliminated a senior Hamas leader in Gaza. That sentence may sound like the opening line of a news bulletin. But it is really a reminder of something much larger: Israel has long understood that those who plan the murder...

Apr 30, 2026, 4:07 PM

Memory lane: From gas lines to price spikes: what the 1970s still teaches us

The lines are gone, but America’s vulnerability to global oil shocks hasn’t disappeared—it’s just changed form. There was a time—not so long ago—when Americans didn’t just complain about the price of gasoline. They wondered whether they could get any at all. In the early 1970s,...

Apr 26, 2026, 9:36 PM

When Politics Becomes Existential, Violence Follows

The lesson of the White House Correspondents’ Dinner shooting is not about left or right—but about what happens when we teach Americans to see each other as threats The scene was jarring precisely because of where it unfolded. Black tie. Cameras. Journalists and elected officials...

Apr 23, 2026, 5:39 PM

Josh Shapiro’s Careful Words on Israel—and What They Avoid

Support with conditions may sound like nuance. In wartime, it risks becoming something else. On the eve of Israel’s 78th Independence Day, Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro struck a familiar tone: he spoke of his love for Israel, affirmed support for lifesaving systems like Iron Dome,...

Apr 16, 2026, 10:00 PM

A Vote That Should Never Have Been Close

When US allies fight for survival, Washington shouldn’t be debating whether to tie their hands At a moment when Israel is fighting enemies on multiple fronts—armed, funded, and directed by Iran—the United States Senate found itself debating whether to restrict the very tools Israel uses...

Apr 10, 2026, 7:26 PM

When Reinvention Replaces Accountability

At Al Sharpton’s annual gathering, political ambition meets a deeper question about standards in public life Each year, the convention of the National Action Network draws a familiar crowd: elected officials, rising political stars, and those widely seen as testing the waters for higher office....

Apr 5, 2026, 1:58 PM

From Sputnik to Artemis: when space meant something

What we once felt—and what we risk losing now I remember the late 1950s not as history, but as atmosphere. The word Sputnik had just entered the American vocabulary, and with it came a quiet, unsettling question: had the United States fallen behind? I didn’t...

Mar 31, 2026, 3:40 AM

The Sound of Something Passing Over

Time spent in a shelter raises an unsettling question: are we simply at war—or witnessing something larger? As I sat in the shelter of my building in Jerusalem, I heard a sound I had never heard before—a low, menacing roar overhead, like a freight...

About Me

Stephen M. Flatow is president of the Religious Zionists of America- Mizrachi (not affiliated with any Israeli or American political party) and the father of Alisa Flatow who was murdered by Iranian sponsored Palestinian terrorists in April 1995. He is the author of "A Father's Story: My Fight For Justice Against Iranian Terror" now available on Amazon in an expanded paperback edition, and the proud grandparent of 16 and great-grandparent of Avigayil Ora, the Duchess, and Esther Pesya, the Countess. This blog will be sometimes serious, sometimes light, but I hope always interesting.

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