This week in power: Iowa, Bibi’s year, Beit Shemesh followup, Fox poll

A roundup of the most talked about political and global stories in the Jewish world this week:

Iowa caucus
Everyone was paying attention to Iowa on Tuesday as the Republican candidates vied for votes, resulting in a ” title=”http://www.jewishjournal.com/rosnersdomain/item/8_comments_following_iowa_how_the_head_of_mossad_became_a_paul_supporter_20/” target=”_blank”>asked Shmuel Rosner at the Jewish Journal. Jewish voters might tip the scales for one of the candidates, ” title=”http://www.thejewishweek.com/news/national/first_primary_battleground_jews_are_non_factor” target=”_blank”>remains a concern.

How’d Netanyahu do?
“Bibi Netanyahu had a very good year,” ” title=”http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-miller-bibi-barack-20120102,0,4943925.story?track=rss&utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+latimes%2Fnews%2Fopinion%2Fcommentary+%28L.A.+Times+-+Commentary%29″ target=”_blank”>said Aaron David Miller in the Los Angeles Times. “Unless Obama and Benjamin Netanyahu find a way to cooperate on a big venture that makes both of them look good, and in a way that allows each to invest in the other, the U.S.-Israel relationship may be in for a bumpy ride.” Stay tuned.

Beit Shemesh furor goes on
The conflict goes on in the Israeli city between ultra-Orthodox and modern Jews over modesty. And the commentary continues to pour out. “Rape is not about sex, it’s about violence. So too Orthodox Jewish men attacking young Orthodox Jewish girls in Beit Shemesh, Israel this past week for wearing short sleeves was not about modesty (the perpetrated acts of violence were of course anything but modest), but about power,” ” title=”http://www.thejewishweek.com/editorial_opinion/editorial/beyond_beit_shemesh” target=”_blank”>said a Jewish Week editorial. “But while it is true that the number of ultra-Orthodox militants is small, the deeper concern is the passive behavior toward them by fellow haredim and the relative silence of the leaders of their communities.” Either way, this needs to end soon, ” title=”http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/02/world/middleeast/holocaust-images-in-ultra-orthodox-protest-anger-israeli-leaders.html” target=”_blank”>according to reports. Ultra-Orthodox protesters reportedly gave young boys yellow stars and striped prison camp uniforms to wear, an evident comparison to the Holocaust. Some people were arrested for a ” title=”http://www.algemeiner.com/2012/01/02/time-for-real-jewish-leadership/” target=”_blank”>said Ronn Torossian at the Algemeiner. “People in Israel misuse the Holocaust in politics and other areas all the time,” ” title=”http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/01/01/3090979/fox-apologizes-for-poll” target=”_blank”>issued an apology for a controversial poll last week that included a suggestion that Jews killed Jesus. It asked people, “Who do you think is responsible for the death of Christ?” and gave three choices: Jewish People, Pontius Pilate and High Priests. “There really isn’t much else to say, except what else can we expect from Fox News? This is the norm for this network, whether it’s done here in the U.S. or overseas,” ” title=”http://www.mediaite.com/online/fox-apologizes-for-poll-asking-if-jews-killed-jesus-christ/” target=”_blank”>added Nando Di Fino at Mediaite.