Saturday, April 2, 2011 - motzei Shabbat

1. Surprise, Surprise, Surprise - you know, like Gomer Pyle would say it.



And some commentary:
(from the time to the issue of the Goldstone Report)

This reminds me of the countless criticisms of Israel - too many to mention - but like the "oops if never really happened" Jenin Massacre - where the truth only comes out later when the heat of the moment has passed and most no one cares - or bothers to read the other side of the story. More evidence that the famous Winston Churchill quote I have referred to before- "A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on" - is 100% correct.

2. Syria - things continue to develop here
(not so fast.....)


5. Dubious Distinction - The Most Islamic Community in Europe - I am not criticizing people who believe in Islam - I am criticizing people who move to another country and utterly disrespect the customs and values of that country - the liberal democratic values that our veterans fought and died for (and continue to fight and die for to this day). Try this on for size:

"The most influential Muslim in Leicester is Shaykh Abu Yusuf Riyadh-ul-Haq, a hard-line Muslim cleric who runs the Al Kawthar Academy, an Islamic school in the city. Ul-Haq, 40, is also the leader of a new generation of "home-grown" British Islamists who loathe Western values, support armed jihad and preach contempt for Christians, Jews and Hindus.

Ul-Haq, who preaches in mosques across Britain, outlaws television and music, and says football is "a cancer that has infected our youth." He is appalled by young women who want to get educated and go to university. He regularly praises the work of the Taliban and their attacks against British troops in Afghanistan."



I have said this before and I will say it again - Great Britain - which despite certain "warts" in its history like colonialism and imperialism - but which country doesn't have such warts? - is responsible for many of the best things in the world today - and which I would summarize simply as the rule of law, pluralism, personal freedom and respect for individual rights of property- and which played an absolutely indispensable role at the start of World War II as the last Western bastion of resistance to the Nazis until the United States entered the war - is slowly committing national suicide by the death of a thousand cuts - one day, it is going to "wake up dead" and find that the whole place has turned into a giant Leicester.


6. More Problems With Moral Equivalence - Koran Burning and Massacres - personally, I think that burning the Koran is stupid - but then again, I think that flag burning is stupid, as are such things as an award-winning photograph showing a crucifix submerged in the "artists" urine.


In any event, the fanatics who committed the atrocities in Afghanistan are solely responsible for what they did - period and full stop. They are only empowered by crap like what Luke Russert wrote - this whole politically correct, post-modern world seems to wallow in, among other things, an incredible inability to recognize any concept of personal responsibility and simply passes the buck and throws up barriers constructed of a million excuses that simply blame others.

7. I'm Not Sure How To Interpret This - Gaza Rights Group Says Militants Endanger Civilians - NYTimes.com - I'm sure that Hamas could not care less.

8. Passover Will Soon Be Upon Us - with the start of the Hebrew month of Nissan (not the car....) just days away, Passover is right around the corner. Here's a somewhat tongue in cheek commentary on this very important Festival of Freedom - Passover: The Marketing Miracle – Forward.com.

"A system where companies, like Facebook, can facilitate human rights violations when it is in their business interest is a system that needs fixing. Companies must be accountable. Human rights do not only apply when they are popular and can garner public outrage and media attention. Facebook’s responsibility to close a group advocating violence arose when the first complaint was made. The number of complaints should not matter, only the fact that the clock has started and Facebook should respond in reasonable time. I still believe we need legislation to make this the law."
10. UNIFIL - the proper name of this entity is the "United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon" - its mandate after the Second Lebanon War is 2006 was to enforce United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701, including, among other things - "security arrangements to prevent the resumption of hostilities, including the establishment between the Blue Line and the Litani river of an area free of any armed personnel, assets and weapons other than those of the Government of Lebanon and of UNIFIL as authorized in paragraph 11, deployed in this area".

UNIFIL's name should be changed to "United Nations Totally Clueless and Blind Force in Hezbollah-Land" - Thanks, United Nations! Israel uncovers 1,000 new Hezbollah military sites in Lebanon - most of which are south of the Litani River. Hezbollah's desire for peace war is palpable don't you think?

And don't get me started on these parts of 1701 - "full implementation of the relevant provisions of the Taif Accords, and of resolutions 1559 (2004) and 1680 (2006), that require the disarmament of all armed groups in Lebanon, so that, pursuant to the Lebanese cabinet decision of 27 July 2006, there will be no weapons or authority in Lebanon other than that of the Lebanese State" and "no sales or supply of arms and related materiel to Lebanon except as authorized by its Government"


11. Cultural Stuff - food, music, literature and film - Tablet Magazine is a great source for links with a Jewish perspective:

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Wednesday, March 30, 2011

1. Syria Heats Up - Ridding Syria of a despot - The Washington Post and Pajamas Media » Don’t Let Syria Play Out Like 2009 Iran. And in the latest today, the Syrian Cabinet resigned - Syria’s Cabinet Resigns - Concessions Expected - NYTimes.com - yawn....

“We continue to believe that people on Facebook should be able to express their opinions, and we don’t typically take down content that speaks out against countries, religions, political entities, or ideas. However, we monitor pages that are reported to us, and when they degrade to direct calls for violence or expressions of hate – as occurred in this case – we have, and will continue to, take them down.”

Good - thanks for sorting that out - I guess that Facebook would have no problem with this - British Columnist Under Investigation For Criticizing Terrorists - Big Journalism.

3. The Cold Must Have Gone To Their Brains - Alan Dershowitz: Norway to Jews—You're Not Welcome Here - WSJ.com and Something rotten in Norway - Israel Opinion, Ynetnews. OK - no more Norwegian smoked salmon for me. Also see this bunch of garbage - European Left Applying Libya Precedent to Israel, Calling for Military Action « Commentary Magazine - which emanates from Norway.


4. Gee, You'd Think They'd Love Anything Norwegian - Elder of Ziyon: PA leadership considering formally abandoning Oslo in September


5. Diplomatic Moves - it may be good to remember that unilateralism is a two way street - Israel threatens unilateral steps if UN recognizes Palestinian state - Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News - and, whoever wrote this headline has a sense of humor - PA accuses Israel of trying to 'bully' UN

6. Utterly Disgraceful - taking moral equivalence to a new low - though I am sure it will be surpassed sometime soon - LA Times: Defense Against Baby Killers is "Tit-For-Tat" | HonestReporting.

7. Ban Ki-Moon - the head of the UN - the cesspool that the PA has the utter audacity to claim is somehow subject to bullying by Israel - has this to say about the "settlements" - Ban calls on Israel to halt building in W. Bank, e. J'lem.
"Ban praised the Palestinian Authority's efforts to build state institutions and the PA security forces for maintaining security in the West Bank, while calling on Israel to halt "actions that prejudge the outcome of the [diplomatic] process."

Shouldn't he at least appear to be neutral - you know, to give the illusion of an honest broker who could mediate a dispute? Maybe he should tell the PA to halt anti-Israel incitement. Maybe he should unravel the UNRWA, which is nothing more than an anti-Israel platform that perpetuates the Palestinian "refugee" issue. Maybe he should tell the PA to stop their non-stop attitude of entitlement, and to come to the bargaining table, make some real concessions and talk peace (see #9 below). And maybe he should at least consider the possibilities of a contrary legal position - International Law-The Settlements Issue: Distorting the Geneva Convention and the Oslo Accords. I'm not holding my breath.

8. POTUS - in other words, the President of the United States. I am not a fan of the President. I do not think he has the experience and knowledge to the President - notwithstanding his fancy academic credentials. I think that someone forgot to tell him that after you win the election, there's actually a very serious 4 year job that comes with the winner's prize - it ain't just a beauty contest. Rex Murphy hits it bang-on in this commentary - An absent America, as does Professor Barry Rubin - RubinReports: President Obama's Failure to Support--With Words Not Guns--Iranian and Syrian Oppositionists Is A Disgrace


And, in the spirit of the season of college basketball's March Madness - Zombie » Obama’s Inner Bracket.

Finally, here is a video about Obama's "policy" on Libya and the use of American power - if you think Obama is doing a good job - (a) don't watch it and (b) why do you think so?


"The Palestinian leader wants the US and EU to force Israel to make concessions to the Palestinians, including a complete cessation of construction in West Bank settlements and east Jerusalem neighborhoods. The message he is sending to the Americans and Europeans is: Get me all that you can from Israel or else I will go to Hamas."



12. Good Advice - Why Palestinians Should Learn About the Holocaust - NYTimes.com - and their refusal to do so (as per their leadership), even from the pukes in UNRWA - speaks volumes - read the comments of not only Hamas, which are entirely expected, but also the "peace partner" Fatah in this link:
"Salah al-Wadiyeh, a Fatah representative in the West Bank, said that the Holocaust was a “big lie.” The Palestinians, he said, “know more than any other people the history of their enemies and their false claims and lies."

13. More Good Advice - Pajamas Media » It’s Official: Egypt Will Hold Parliamentary Elections in September - better get organized to defeat the Muslim Brotherhood.

14. Gadhaffi Duck - somehow the brainiacs and smug self-appointed experts who make up "The Elders" (the group includes Jimmy Carter, Kofi Annan, Desmond Tutu and Mary Robinson - if you want to know what wrong with these guys, read the following link - with all due respect to former members of the US Navy and the living (and deceased) former Presidents of the United States - any group with good ole Jimmah is a non-starter in my book) have come to the conclusion that Gadhaffi should step down - gee, guys, don't go out on a limb - wouldn't want to prosecute the homicidal maniac or anything - here's an interesting question - Should Muammar Qaddafi Join “The Elders”? Commentary Magazine. He'd fit right in! And he could even design their outfits - give them some style! See these fashion examples:

15. Looking Back At History - A variety of links that look backward, so to speak:

17. Stuxnet - here's a long article from Vanity Fair on this subject - A Declaration of Cyber-War Culture: vanityfair.com

18. Joy In Sports - I have become very cynical about most professional and collegiate sports - from the labor strife in the NFL to the whole LeBron James leaving Cleveland drama, to the arrogance of the NHL front office to the football scandal at Ohio State University. And even though there is lots to be cynical about in NCAA Basketball, the annual championship tournament known as March Madness produces extraordinary games, tremendous drama, and often, unbridled joy. Here is a famous moment from the 1983 Tournament, when NC State upset heavily favored Houston (a scoring machine known as Phi Slamma Jamma) on a last second miracle - known as much for the reaction of (the late) Coach Jim Valvano as anything else - followed by some great pictures from this year's Tournament (Final Four - VCU, Butler, Kentucky and UConn).


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Sunday, March 27th, 2011

I've been unable to blog for a bit, but I see that there is no shortage of news and topics.

1. Serious Stuff At The United Nations - the bastion of uselessness will serve as an interesting diplomatic battleground in the fall - someone in the Israeli diplomatic corps better get on this. The Palestinians have been getting everything for nothing forever, so they will spare no effort to effect this victory. How Palestinians will use the GA to advance statehood. The only further thing they could want would be given all of Israel without any Jews - but don't think they isn't what they want - and they have the usual fools in the West to help them - The Progressive West Supports the Quest for a Judenrein State of Palestine (more on this later).


As is said so eloquently here - Portraits of the Peace Process in Its 92nd Year:
"We are now in the 92nd year of a peace process in which the Palestinians are the first people in history to be offered a state seven times, reject it seven times, and set preconditions for discussing an eighth offer."
My only issue with the quote is that I do not believe that there is such a thing as the "Palestinian People" in terms of a national or political group - they are, in my opinion, Arabs who lived in the former British Mandate that resulted from the dissolution of the Ottoman Empire - see this link for more details.

2. Facebook - there's a new page on Facebook about starting the Third Intifada - wonder how fast a page advocating killing Muslims or Blacks or Indians or Asians or Italians or French or Germans or Russians or whoever - or even baby seals for that matter - would be permitted to remain ? But don't worry, they are going to monitor the situation - Facebook 'monitoring' page calling for 3rd intifada - if the guys at Facebook can't figure this out, they they need to take a remedial class in Hatred 101.


Like the politically correct and ivory tower challenged President of the University of Manitoba who wouldn't censor what he hadn't yet heard in respect of the disgraceful anti-Israel sham known as IAW, these Facebook morons don't see the need to nip this in the bud - I guess having money doesn't make you smart. And in both cases, is there any doubt what was going to be said during IAW on the Manitoba campus, and is there any doubt what happened during the first and second Intifadas?

Hey U of M and Facebook - what would you say about these guys? Calgary’s in-your-face neo-Nazis take to the streets - The Globe and Mail Can they come to U of M? Don't know what they will say, but we can't prejudge........Can they put up a page on Facebook? I know - you'll monitor it....

3. No One Cares About Jews - unless it's to kill or blame them. And only do it gradually - then especially no one will care - Killing Jews in small doses - Israel Opinion, Ynetnews. also see:
And check this out and the articles it links to - Media Coverage of Bus Bombing Emphasizes Settlements, “Palestinian Victims”Commentary Magazine. Do you wonder why I don't take the mainstream media very seriously anymore?

No matter what you might think of Glenn Beck - listen to what he says in this clip:



4. Syria - as far as I am concerned, I hope President Assad gets what he deserves - a trip to visit his father in the deepest recesses of hell:



6. Iran - and the maniacal Ahmadinejad and the Mullahs - sounds like a bad Vegas act.....Iran executes Jewish-Armenian couple in secret and UN: Iran has intensified executions - World - Canoe.ca.


7. News Flash - The Death of an Illusion - Rich Lowry - National Review Online - blame someone/something else for a change.

8. The International Red Cross - Int'l Red Cross Sheltering Hamas Terrorist Officials - Inside Israel - CBN News - Christian News 24-7 - CBN.com - but they can't get a visit to Gilad Shalit.

(humanity - yea, right.....)

9. Pete Seeger Can Go To Hell - And take Helen Thomas with him (RubinReports: Two Helen Thomas Farces: What She Says and How She's Ridiculed) - the sooner the better. I even deleted my copy of Bruce Springsteen's "Seeger Sessions" - Ron Radosh » Pete Seeger’s Latest Shame—He Proves Again that he Remains a Useful Idiot.



READ THIS!!! - This letter states the anti-boycott argument much more articulately and eloquently than I ever could - Kobi Oz: Make Music, Not Boycotts — A Letter to Roger Waters on Israel and BDS – Forward.com

Kudos to Gene Simmons of the old rock group KISS - The Press Association: Simmons blasts Israel music boycott



11. Odds & Sods - a variety of links on a variety of subjects - some serious:
some not:
12. The End - as regular visitors to this blog know, I try to end with something lighter or upbeat. Sometimes, that it easier said than done. Tonight, having just finished reading "Going Down Jericho Road" a fantastic book about the 1968 Memphis sanitation workers' strike and Martin Luther King's subsequent involvement (which is why he was in memphis when he was murdered), I thought it was appropriate to end with something inspirational from Martin Luther King - from the eerie prescient speech given the night before his murder - which is even more remarkable if you know the background described in the book.


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