By Josh Spiro, Tel Aviv University

 

A recent talk by popular Israeli authors Etgar Keret and Alona Kimhi drew students to the Hebrew University in Jerusalem from as far as Haifa, Be'er Sheva, Tel Aviv and Arad, through rain that would have made Noah double-check his caulking. If the students were expecting unorthodox opinions, they were not disappointed. At one point, Keret characterized the ties between Diaspora and Israeli Jews as being "like an S & M relationship."

 

"[There are people who say] we serve in the army, and if not for Israel there would be pogroms in Wisconsin. I find this attitude annoying. There should be a dialogue between us. We are like brothers who have a lot to learn from each other."

 

The unofficial...