Thursday 6 August 2009
ADL - The Problem is Arab Rejection of Israel
The Problem Isn't Settlements,
It's Arab Rejection of Israel
We all support peace in the Middle East, but pressuring Israel, our vital friend and ally, will not bring success.
The obstacle to peace isn't Israel and the problem isn't settlements.
The greatest obstacle to peace is the Arab/Palestinian rejection of Israel's right to exist for over 60 years.
We need your help.
Sign our letter to President Obama. Tell him that the path to peace begins with Arab recognition of Israel.
Add your signature to our letter below and let your voice be heard.
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The Problem is Arab Rejection of Israel
Human Rights Watch Watch
Human Rights Watch Watch
I have now completed a first draft of an article about Israel's report on the Gaza Operation. I hope to put it online today or tomorrow. Part of it - a small but significant part - deals with our own so-called "human rights organizations" (they are actually nothing of the sort in any meaningful way). But I admit I haven't been blogging much about the ongoing disgrace of Human Rights Watch.
Upon reflection, perhaps I don't need to. These guys (here and here) are doing a fine job, and what could I add?
Upon reflection, perhaps I don't need to. These guys (here and here) are doing a fine job, and what could I add?
taken from Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations
Israel Matzav: Awesome: Hamas 'steals' UNRWA ambulances
Awesome: Hamas 'steals' UNRWA ambulances
The IDF has disclosed that three ambulances that were transferred to UNRWA via the Kerem Shalom crossing point two weeks ago were stolen by Hamas. Israel Matzav: Awesome: Hamas 'steals' UNRWA ambulancesAccording to the army, a short time after the ambulances arrived in Gaza via the Kerem Shalom border crossing, Hamas gunmen overpowered the drivers and took control of the vehicles. The IDF noted that UNRWA failed to report the incident.
Read All at :
Israel Matzav: 7 Democratic Reps lobby AG Holder on behalf of Islamist groups
7 Democratic Reps lobby AG Holder on behalf of Islamist groups
In an interview with FrontPageMagazine, terror investigator Steve Emerson reports that seven Democratic members of the US House of Representatives have lobbied Attorney General Eric Holder to ease up on nine Islamist terror groups. The Democrats involved include some household names. Emerson: We obtained a letter sent on July 24 by seven House Democrats to Attorney General Holder on behalf of 9 radical Islamic front groups relaying the complaints of the groups about law enforcement techniques in terrorist cases, including the use of informants.
Read All at :
Israel Matzav: 7 Democratic Reps lobby AG Holder on behalf of Islamist groups
Israel Matzav: 'To kill Israeli soldiers is to worship God'
'To kill Israeli soldiers is to worship God'
London's Independent reports on the screening of the first ever Hamas movie about terror leader Imad Aqel (pictured), who was liquidated by Israel in 1993. The movie was written by Mahmoud al-Zahar and cost $120,000 to make (your tax dollars at work again - where do you think Hamas gets money). 'Reporter' Nidal al-Mughrabi - generally a stringer for the wire services - describes the line that is this post's title as the movie's most memorable line.Read All at :
Israel Matzav: 'To kill Israeli soldiers is to worship God'
Israel Matzav: The only Arab 'country' with economic growth is ... the 'Palestinian Authority'
The only Arab 'country' with economic growth is ... the 'Palestinian Authority'
The New York Times' Tom Friedman has a dismal column in which he summarizes a report that was recently released about human development in the Arab world. The report updates the one released in 2002, which highlighted things like Greece translating five times as many books into Greek as the entire Arab world translated into Arabic, and the GDP of Spain being more than that of all the Arab countries combined. Friedman says the new report presents an even bleaker picture than the one presented in 2002, with highlights including high unemployment (more than double the world average), lack of personal security and a burgeoning population (60% under the age of 25) with no prospect of supporting itself.Read All at :
Israel Matzav: The only Arab 'country' with economic growth is ... the 'Palestinian Authority'
Israel Matzav: Ahmadinejad: Enemies on all sides
Ahmadinejad: Enemies on all sides
In the New York Post, Amir Taheri recounts some of the unusual circumstances connected with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad's installation as President. Israel Matzav: Ahmadinejad: Enemies on all sidesSigns of trouble were abundant at Monday's ceremony -- a legally necessary prelude to today's -- when "Supreme Guide" Ali Khamenei officially "endorsed" the election results with a fatwa appointing Ahmadinejad to a new term.
Concerned that protesters might disrupt that ceremony, organizers kept its venue a secret until the last minute. This was the first time in 29 years that the "endorsement" event was shrouded in secrecy.Read All at :
Israel Matzav: 'Palestinian' terrorists smuggling their sperm out of prison
'Palestinian' terrorists smuggling their sperm out of prison
YNet reports that 'Palestinian' terrorists imprisoned in the Nafha and Shikma prisons have smuggled sperm out of the prisons - apparently through visiting relatives - at least six times. The sperm is used to impregnate their wives and raise the 'Palestinian' birthrate. While 'Palestinian' terrorists have many privileges (and Israeli MK's have called for reducing those privileges in light of Gilad Shalit having been held incommunicado for the last three years), conjugal visits are not among them. Israel Matzav: 'Palestinian' terrorists smuggling their sperm out of prisonThe Hasam organization, which cares for Palestinians prisoners, says the prisoners in question come from the Gaza Strip and the West Bank. According to Mufak Hamid, head of the organization's PR division, the sperm was smuggled in the presence of witnesses who are relatives of the couples.
Read All at :
Israel Matzav: Surprise: Mary Robinson wasn't vetted
Surprise: Mary Robinson wasn't vetted
In The Corner, Tevi Troy reports that Mary Robinson, whose selection as a Medal of Freedom recipient has caused quite a controversy, was not properly vetted. I have been asking whether the White House knew that Mary Robinson was a controversial pick for the Medal of Freedom or if they were caught unawares by the controversy. A source has now indicated that she was not fully vetted, but that the White House feels that backing down at this point would make things worse.
Who recommended her? Chas Freeman?
And why would backing down 'make things worse'? It might show sensitivity to the Jewish community that has been sorely lacking in this administration (Freeman was done in by an email he wrote about Tianneman Square and not - as he claimed - by the mysterious Israel lobby). Of course, Obama's friends Rashid Khalidi and Jeremiah "Them Jews" Wright would not be pleased. But Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY) would be pleased.
And why would backing down 'make things worse'? It might show sensitivity to the Jewish community that has been sorely lacking in this administration (Freeman was done in by an email he wrote about Tianneman Square and not - as he claimed - by the mysterious Israel lobby). Of course, Obama's friends Rashid Khalidi and Jeremiah "Them Jews" Wright would not be pleased. But Congressman Eliot Engel (D-NY) would be pleased.
Read All at :
Israel Matzav: Surprise: Mary Robinson wasn't vetted
Israel Matzav: US and EU protest the rule of law in Israel
US and EU protest the rule of law in Israel
Both the US and Sweden (the current President of the EU) summoned Israel's ambassadors on Tuesday to protest Israel's adherence to the rule of law. Israel Matzav: US and EU protest the rule of law in IsraelU.S. Assistant Secretary of State for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman summoned Michael Oren [pictured. CiJ], Israel's ambassador to Washington, to tell him that the United States views Sunday's eviction of two Palestinian families from homes in East Jerusalem's Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood as a "provocative" and "unacceptable" act that violates Israel's obligations under the road map peace plan.
Oren responded by saying that the buildings in question have been Jewish-owned since before Israel's founding, and that a court ordered the families' evictions because they had violated the terms of their leases.Read All at :
Israel Matzav: Syria seeks to appropriate Israel's water resources
Syria seeks to appropriate Israel's water resources
Here in Israel and in other countries around the region, this past winter was our fifth straight with less than average rainfall. It doesn't rain here in the summer, so we have to deal with a water shortage at least until the winter rains come in March. Israel is dealing with it by imposing a NIS 20 (a little more than $5) surcharge on each cubic meter of water used by households beyond their (very minimal) quota. Our lawn is completely dry (in the park next door the lawn looks beautiful and the city waters it in mid-afternoon - the least efficient way possible, but that's a separate issue). We turn off our shower water while soaping up (something we have done for years), have buckets beneath our sinks and showers to collect water to fill the toilet tanks and water the trees and bushes in the yard, and generally try to minimize flushing the toilet. We leave the bath full after the kids take baths and use the water to water the garden. We have done this since December. Our last water bill showed half the water usage of a year ago, and we barely made it within our quota. That ought to give you some perspectiveRead All at :
Israel Matzav: Obama please don't come here
Obama please don't come here
Although we disagree on the 'settlements,' Shmuel Rosner has reached the same conclusion that I have about a potential Obama trip to Israel: It serves no useful purpose. Israel Matzav: Obama please don't come hereBoth Benn and Burston seem to believe that Israelis disapprove of Obama because they don't understand what he wants--simply because he has failed to explain it to them. It's unsurprising that columnists friendly to the ideas of the Israeli center-left would suggest that Israelis are actually in line with Obama's agenda. But there's an easier way of interpreting Israelis' uneasiness with Obama: They do understand him, and do not agree with him. If that's the case, more Obama-talk will not make a big difference. It is very common to blame "communication" when things go badly between two parties. However, there are many things that no improvement of communication will remedy.
...
Yes, Israelis might appreciate the honor of having the U.S. president talking directly to them. (As Benn writes, "In the 16 rosy years of Bill Clinton and George W. Bush, Israelis became spoiled by unfettered presidential attention.") But what exactly is he going to tell them? That peace is good for all and that he wants to advance peace? They know. That Palestinians suffer? They know. That he cares deeply for Israel's security? They know he says that, and would like to believe it, but the real game-changer will require proof, not words. Clinton and Bush didn't just say "We care for Israel" and instantly become darlings of the Israeli public. They showed they care--mostly by getting along well with the Israeli governments of Rabin and Sharon respectively. The Obama administration has done little to curry Israeli trust with their churlish attitude toward Netanyahu. In this sense, I agree with Benn and Burston: Regardless of the inevitable vapidity of an Obama speech directed at Israelis, the act of making the trip to Israel would be at least be a "deed"--a demonstration of good will on his part.Read All at :
America Doesn't Acknowledge
America Doesn't Acknowledge
Somebody shot a missile at a house where a top Pakistan-Taliban leader may have been, and killed one of his wives. If they did all the due diligence and were convinced he was in there, and felt their chances of killing him elsewhere were limited, this was probably a legitimate act of war, and we should regret they didn't get their man, not only that they did kill his wife. Recent history supplies quite a number of demonstrations that killing top terrorists saves lots of innocent lives.
The part of the story where I grimaced cynically hwever, was this:
The part of the story where I grimaced cynically hwever, was this:
The U.S. Embassy had no comment Wednesday. Washington generally does not
acknowledge the missile strikes, which are fired from unmanned drones. In the
past, however, American officials have said the missiles have killed several
important al-Qaida operatives.
America, being big and powerful, doesn't see any need even to confirm when it carries out such attacks. Of course, there aren't any other forces in the area with the technical ability to fire missiles from drones, but that's not an argument for transparency.
Israel is packed with self-appointed so called "human rights organizations", and they routinely blame their country even for things it doesn't do. Their American counterparts, however, all the Andrew Sullivan's, Glenn Greenwalds, Juan Coles, Mondoweisses etc, can't be bothered. That is, they can't be bothered when it's their own country. They'll gladly pile on when it's Israel.
taken from Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations
Maybe Distance Matters
Maybe Distance Matters
A couple of days ago I speculated that perhaps distance matters, and well-meaning professionals such as Thomas Friedman and Jeffrey Goldberg really see our reality in different terms than we do. This then prompted an American woman with a Jewish-sounding name to reprimand me for being a far-rght obstructor of everything good that could happen in this region, but I haven't yet decided if she's real. I mean, anyone can invent any identity they wish to on the Internet.
Here's more grist for my thesis. Thomas Friedman, again, versus Avi Issacharoff. Both are fine professionals, much better than most of what passes for journalism these days. Both have been following the Israel-Palestine-Mideast story for decades. Both are well connected. I'm not certain Friedman knows the local languages, as Issacharoff does, but he has lived here. (Goldberg also knows the languages, by the way, but I'm not shooting at him this morning). And both, each in their respective context, are left-of-center in their politics.
Friedman reports from Ramallah. His thesis: the Arab World is in a serious mess, but the (West Bank) Palestinians, of all people, are showing signs of vitality creativity and general adaptibility to modernity that may yet serve as a model to the rest of the region. Sounds great, doesn't it. But then Issacharoff spoils the mood. The next violent explosion, he says, is already in the works. To be fair, he puts quite a bit of the responsibility for this at the feet of Israel, but I'm not going to argue with him here. My point is the disparity between the two journalists.
Richard Beeston of the London Times, by the way, tells that Hezbullah is well advanced in its preparations for the next war, in which it will rain rockets on Tel Aviv. This irrespective of the Palestinian issue, mind you; yet another reminder that we could abjectly give in to every single Palestinian demand and still the war against us would go on. So that's comforting.
Here's more grist for my thesis. Thomas Friedman, again, versus Avi Issacharoff. Both are fine professionals, much better than most of what passes for journalism these days. Both have been following the Israel-Palestine-Mideast story for decades. Both are well connected. I'm not certain Friedman knows the local languages, as Issacharoff does, but he has lived here. (Goldberg also knows the languages, by the way, but I'm not shooting at him this morning). And both, each in their respective context, are left-of-center in their politics.
Friedman reports from Ramallah. His thesis: the Arab World is in a serious mess, but the (West Bank) Palestinians, of all people, are showing signs of vitality creativity and general adaptibility to modernity that may yet serve as a model to the rest of the region. Sounds great, doesn't it. But then Issacharoff spoils the mood. The next violent explosion, he says, is already in the works. To be fair, he puts quite a bit of the responsibility for this at the feet of Israel, but I'm not going to argue with him here. My point is the disparity between the two journalists.
Richard Beeston of the London Times, by the way, tells that Hezbullah is well advanced in its preparations for the next war, in which it will rain rockets on Tel Aviv. This irrespective of the Palestinian issue, mind you; yet another reminder that we could abjectly give in to every single Palestinian demand and still the war against us would go on. So that's comforting.
taken from Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations
UNIVERSAL TORAH: EIKEV
UNIVERSAL TORAH: EIKEV
By Rabbi Avraham Greenbaum
Torah Reading: EIKEV, Deuteronomy 7:12-11:25.
Haftara: Isaiah 49:14-51:3.
THE BOOK & THE SWORD; THE LOAF & THE STICK
The Midrash on Parshas EIKEV teaches: "The Book and the Sword descended from heaven entwined together; the Loaf and the Rod descended from heaven entwined together" (Sifri). The Book -- the Torah -- brings blessing to the world if we observe it; but if not, a Sword is attached that wreaks the vengeance of the Covenant. The Loaf of Bread, the "staff of life", is given as G-d's blessing when we keep the Torah, but if we stray, the struggles of making a living can turn into a painful rod of punishment.
This Midrash expresses the conditional nature of G-d's Covenant with Israel, a central theme in Eikev and one that appears with increasing emphasis as we advance through Deuteronomy. Eikev begins with the rich blessings and benefits that are the reward for keeping the laws of the Torah. Yet in the course of the parshah, Moses brings out in numerous different ways that these blessings and benefits may not be taken for granted: long-term possession of the Land of Israel and enjoyment of its blessings are strictly contingent upon proper observance of the Covenant on our part. This is clearly stated at the climax of the parshah (Deuteronomy 11:13-21), recited every day, night and morning, as the second paragraph of the SHEMA. "If you will surely listen. I will give the rain of your land in its time. and you will eat and be satisfied. But if you go astray. you will quickly be lost from the good land that HaShem is giving you."
G-d wants that the benefits and blessings should truly be ours -- that we should have them not as a free gift which the recipient does not appreciate and which embarrasses him, but rather as something we have earned through our own efforts in the face of challenges and difficulties. G-d therefore sends many trials in life, and sometimes takes us through the very wilderness "in order to chastise you, to test you, to know what is in your heart and whether you will observe His commandments or not" (Deut. 8:2). We are here to learn a deep lesson that we have to know not just in our minds but within our very hearts. The lesson is, "that just as a man chastises his son [out of love] so HaShem your G-d chastises you" (ibid. 4. 5). We have to learn and know in our hearts that any suffering we endure and all the obstacles in our path are sent not because G-d wants to throw us down but rather because He wants us to strive harder to get up, in order to come to greater good.
* * *
THE BLESSED LAND
The ultimate state of benefit and goodness is expressed in the Torah as Israel living securely in their own land "from the river to the sea" (Deut. 11:24), observing the Torah and enjoying all the blessings of the land. The rectified Land of Israel of this world is to be the earthly replica of the essential Land of Israel, which is the Land of the Living inherited forever by the meek and righteous in the World to Come.
Nowhere in the Torah is there greater praise of the holy Land of Israel than throughout our parshah of Eikev. It is "a good land, a land of streams of water, springs and deep sources emerging in the valleys and in the mountains. A land of wheat and barley and vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of oily olives and date-honey. A land in which you will eat bread not in poverty -- you will not lack anything in it: it is a land whose stones are iron and from whose mountains you will hew copper. And you will eat and be satisfied and bless HaShem your G-d over the good land He has given you" (Deut. 8:7-10).
"For the land to which you are coming in order to inherit it is not like the land of Egypt which you left, where you sow your seed and water the land on foot like a vegetable garden. But the land that you are passing over to inherit is a land of mountains and valleys; it drinks water according to the rain of the heavens. It is a land that HaShem your G-d seeks; the eyes of HaShem your G-d are always on it from the beginning of the year to the end of the year" (Deut. 11:10-12).
The actual country of Israel is one of exquisite beauty and grace, with its ever-changing landscape of mountains, hills and valleys and plains. The entire country is a tiny part of the entire earth, yet nothing is lacking, from the ski slopes of Mount Hermon to the arid Negev desert. The seven fruits for which Israel is particularly praised are all of exceptional nutritional value as well as providing numerous other benefits. Almost every other conceivable variety of fruits, vegetables and spices also grows somewhere in Israel. Why so many different species all grow so well in this tiny land is explained in the Midrash, which teaches that subterranean energy channels emanate from the "Foundation Stone" on the Temple Mount, the source of all creation, spreading throughout Israel, and fanning out from there to all parts of the world. Each channel has the power to stimulate a particular species. If people knew the exact location of these subterranean channels, they would be able to grow any kind of tree or plant they wanted (Kohelet Rabbah 2:7; see Rabbi Nachman's Wisdom p. 167).
The key difference between Israel and Egypt, which represents all other lands, lies in the water economy, which is the key to agriculture and therefore to the whole economy. In Egypt, the main source of water is the Nile, whose annual rise is one of the fixed regularities of nature. For the farmer in Egypt, making a living is less of a trial of faith. He knows when the river can be expected to rise, and he knows it is up to him to put in the "foot-work", carrying water from field to field to irrigate his crops so as to produce food. It is easy for him to come to believe that everything works according to the laws of nature, and that his own "foot-work" (operating the natural causes) is what "produces" his food and livelihood.
Israel's precarious dependence on rain from heaven for its water supply makes it harder to fall into the error of believing that we single-handedly "produce" our own livelihood through our own material efforts. We depend on G-d. No matter how efficiently we till our fields, if the rains don't come from heaven, we will not be able to produce anything. The rainfall in the Land of Israel is temperamental! Whether the rains fall sparsely or in abundance does not depend on anything we can do on the material plane. Rather, it represents G-d's response to our efforts on the moral and spiritual planes of our lives. The rainfall and everything else in Israel are subject to G-d's direct supervision in every detail, and thus, "the eyes of HaShem your G-d are always on it from the beginning of the year to the end of the year".
The purpose of being in the Land of Israel is to live in a state of closeness and interactivity with G-d, understanding that in everything we do in this world we are "partners" with Him. We are here to earn the goodness we enjoy through our own efforts, but we must understand that our efforts can only succeed when they are in alignment with His will as expressed in the Torah. It is a dangerous sin to believe that "my power and the strength of my hand have made for me all this prosperity" (Deut. 8:17). On the contrary, it is necessary to remember always that "It is He who gives you the power to produce prosperity" (ibid. v.18).
* * *
WHAT DOES G-D ASK OF YOU?
In parshas Eikev one of the main focuses of Moses' reproof is the sin of the Golden Calf. This represents the exact opposite of the relationship with wealth and prosperity that G-d wants in the rectified Land of Israel. The sin of the Golden Calf represents the pursuit of material prosperity and pleasure for their own sake. Putting their own strength, power and pleasure at the center of the world drives men into forgetfulness: man forgets G-d.
G-d wants man to be blessed with material wealth not for its own sake, but because when his needs are provided he can better devote himself to the pursuit of the knowledge of G-d and His Torah. In the rectified Land of Israel, prosperity leads to . "And you shall eat and be satisfied and bless HaShem your G-d" (Deut. 8:10).
This verse contains the commandment to bless G-d after eating, from which the sages also derived the obligation to bless Him before eating or partaking of other material pleasures. The blessing before and after eating elevates it from the level of a mere physical function to an act of service that brings us closer to G-d by enhancing our awareness of His hand in providing our livelihood.
The essence of what G-d asks of us, as expressed in our parshah, is to seek awareness and knowledge of G-d in all the different aspects of our lives. "And now, Israel, what (MAH) does HaShem your G-d ask of you except to revere HaShem your G-d, to go in all His ways, to love Him and to serve HaShem your G-d with all your heart and with all your soul" (Deut. 10:12).
The Rabbis taught that what G-d asks of us -- MAH -- is actually ME'AH, "one hundred", alluding to the one hundred blessings that make up the daily order of our prayers (the morning blessings, the blessings before and after food and the thrice-repeated 18 blessings of the Amidah standing prayer). By regularly blessing G-d throughout the day and praying to Him for all the different specifics in our lives, we heighten our consciousness of His active involvement in every area of our lives. This is how we overcome "forgetfulness".
Shabbat Shalom!!!
Avraham Yehoshua Greenbaum
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AZAMRA INSTITUTE
PO Box 50037 Jerusalem 91500 Israel
Website: www.azamra.org
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