America is in the midst of a presidential election, and even though Hadassah Magazine does not endorse candidates,we are acutely aware that our readers are in­tensely active in civic affairs and interested in the November outcome. In past election years, we have typically run two articles, each articulating the case for one of the major candidates, but this year we decided to open things up.

The Hadassah Magazine 2008 Election Forum offers a dozen perspectives on the candidacies of Senators Barack Obama and John McCain. We hope these statements make it a little easier for readers who are still undecided.

Participants represent a variety of back­grounds—from political and diplomatic to academic and communal. We asked each contributor for a short, definitive endorsement and requested that they focus their comments more on the merits of their chosen candidate than on the shortcomings of the other nominee.

One of the key issues that will face the new president is the threat of a nuclear Iran, and one of the most knowledgeable commentators on the challenge is Ehud Ya’ari of Israel’s Channel 2, who spoke recently with Hadassah Magazine correspondent Charley J. Levine. When it comes to formulating policy on Iran, Ya’ari considers both danger and opportunity. While he thinks the existential threat to Israel of an Iranian bomb is grave, he also expresses confidence in “the capability of the international community to bring about effective pressures and sanctions to convince [the Iranians] to stop or freeze their activities short of the nuclear threshold.”

In the 1960s, it was hard to separate nuclear threats from “the day the music died.” But in today’s complex world one melody from that bygone era is still soaring. Rahel Musleah writes about the musical and spiritual legacy of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach. Fourteen years after his death, his music seems designed for a world of tough choices that also demands prayer and joy.