Madoff and us
J.J,. Goldberg tends to ask some of the most difficult questions about Jewish life, and does so again in an essay on Madoff, in the latest issue of Contact magazine:
When we examine Jewish behavior, we usually focus narrowly on how closely Jews adhere to the community’s ideals. We survey Jewish ritual behavior, but not Jewish economic behavior. We’re afraid that would lead to anti-Semitic stereotyping. Accordingly, Jewish discussions of Madoff include endless talk about how Judaism expects Jews to behave, but we never get around to discussing why Bernie Madoff – or others who have acted egregiously – behaved differently. And so when an incident blows up, we are caught flat-footed, groping for a way to understand.
JustASC is written by Andrew Silow-Carroll, Editor-in-Chief of the 