Monday, March 15, 2010

1. If It Was Not This Excuse, They'd Find Another - Senior PLO member warns building in east J'lem will lead to intifada - Israel News, Ynetnews and Palestinians aren't missing the chance to fan the flames - Haaretz - Israel News.


2. More On The Newest Settlement Fiasco - In my opinion, this latest mess boils down to one thing and one thing only. Just like the Palestinians will seize on any opportunity to launch an intifada, the current US Administration will seize on any opportunity to give grief to Israel.

I have no problem admitting that the announcement was poorly timed. But the "shit-storm" (I can think of no better description) that has resulted is not only completely out of proportion, and is a prime example of shocking double-standards.

In addition, I think that it is a searing indictment of President Obama's foreign policy. In the words of a Wall Street Journal editorial - Review & Outlook: Obama's Turn Against Israel - WSJ.com:
"Then again, this episode does fit Mr. Obama's foreign policy pattern to date: Our enemies get courted; our friends get the squeeze. It has happened to Poland, the Czech Republic, Honduras and Colombia. Now it's Israel's turn."
There is lots of overheated rhetoric all over the place. This ridiculous editorial in today's Globe & Mail is a prime example - Insincere and unhelpful - The Globe and Mail.

Here are more articles on this subject.

3. Meanwhile.... - Obama Talks, Syria Mocks | The Weekly Standard - Hey Madame Secretary - is this an insult? Honestly?


4. Suck On This, World - Really, was there ever any doubt? 'Hamas used kids as human shields'.






7. Hey - We've Got Our Own Refugees - Real Ones Too - Jews Displaced From Arab Lands Finally Recognized – Forward.com





10. Hey Mr. President, Is This An Insult? - The Associated Press: Iran bans leading pro-reform political party

11. Hey, I've Got An Idea - Every time a Jewish person in Israel plans to do anything - anything - like maybe breathing, eating, or going to the washroom - they should check with Hamas, Hezbollah, Jordan, the United States, the UK, the European Union and the rest of the world - to make sure it is OK. Would not want to offend anyone you know. Or - they can all go to hell. Talk about double-standards!

Here's the latest example - the Hurva Synagogue in the - get this - Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem (hello???) has been reconstructed and rededicated. The original synagogue was - get this - destroyed by the Arab Legion in 1948. So naturally, this event draws condemnation.
It all comes down to this - in the words of Jeffrey Goldberg - "But this is about denying the right of Judaism to exist in its holiest city"


12. OK - "D" is drive (forward) and "R" is reverse (backwards) - Holy cow!


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Sunday, March 14, 2010 - Cartoon Edition

Change of pace time.

I am a big fan of editorial cartoons (especially those by Dry Bones). When they are well-done, they immediately convey a powerful message in a way that a newspaper article or op-ed piece cannot. So here are a variety of cartoons (some old, some new, some on serious topics, some not) on a variety of issues.

And since it is said that a picture is worth a thousand words, I will let the cartoons speak for themselves. Enjoy!








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Sunday, March 14, 2010

1. East Jerusalem - So there is no question that the big story is the latest sour spot in the relations between the US and Israel. As I understand the story, a relatively low-level committee of the Israeli Ministry of the Interior announced the approval of 1,600 apartment units in East Jerusalem while Vice-President Joe Biden was in Israel.


The announcement was interpreted as a sign that Israel does not want peace. The Minister of the Interior apologized, saying that there was no intent to embarrass the Vice-President. The Minister did point out that the plans had been in the works for 3 years. More importantly, he indicated that whatever settlement freeze the Israeli Government might have agreed with (been coerced into?) the US, the freeze never applied to any part of Jerusalem.

Meanwhile, though Prime Minister Netanyahu apologized to the Vice-President, and the apology was apparently accepted, Secretary of State Clinton took great umbrage at the situation. She has been quoted as saying that the situation was an "insult" to the United States.


So the rhetoric has been flying all over the place. Everyone has jumped on the Israelis, who, it would appear, were guilty of poor timing and bad management. The Palestinians have, of course, ratcheted up their outrage.

Before I link to all the various articles flying around the Internet, I will observe (and I'm not saying it's original) that while Israel plans to build some apartment units in its national capital and Iran is actively seeking to build nuclear weapons - it is, naturally, Israel that comes in for special condemnation. I think I hear Natan Sharansky's 3D test going off in the background......

I will also quote Professor Barry Rubin from one of the links below:
"What this announcement really shows is that Israel doesn’t want or intend to give up all of east Jerusalem as part of a peace agreement, which is not exactly news.

Would it be better for Israel’s international position if the announcement had not been made? Yes. Because it allows the United States—which needs excuses for the failure to succeed at peacemaking—and the PA and Arab states—which need some rationale for their own policies to blame Israel

But does it really do any material harm to a peace process which is going nowhere due to Palestinian positions? Or does it make the PA and Arab states, which are supposedly salivating for a peace deal, change their mind? In both cases, no.

So, stupid yes. But deliberate sabotage or proof of warmongering? No."
In any event - here are the links - decide for yourself:
2. Speaking Of The Vice-President - Here is the text of his speech at Tel Aviv University. RealClearWorld - The Enduring Partnership Between Israel and America. The words are good, but I have my doubts about President Obama's fondness for Israel, and how that will translate into action.

3. The Blameless, Peace-Loving Palestinians - Somehow this story seems to have flown under the radar - Palestinians Honor a Figure Reviled in Israel as a Terrorist - NYTimes.com and Commentary » Blog Archive » Remembering Dalal Mughrabi.
"And so, while Vice President Biden was busy “condemning” Israel for building housing units in its capital, the Palestinians were bogged down on when to best lionize their martyrs. But make no mistake: the Palestinians are proud of their achievements, just as the Israelis are of theirs."

And, Madame Secretary - what have you got to say about this? Pajamas Media » Promises of Reform in Palestinian Schools Unmet


4. And The Genocidal Iranian Leadership - this is an insult to the entire civilized world - what does the Secretary of State say about this? 'Hated Israel will be annihilated'


5. Iran - so, while on the topic, what's new with Iran?
6. Another Racist Gone - Disgraced aboriginal leader Ahenakew dies - Canada - Canoe.ca. You will not be missed - the words below are the words of a unredeemed, resolute antisemite:

"At his second trial on hate charges he testified that he doesn't hate Jews but still believes they caused the Second World War.

"Everybody says I'm a Jew-hater," he told court. "I don't hate the Jews, but I hate what they do to people."




8. Adolf Eichmann - Germany fights to keep Holocaust organiser's files sealed - Telegraph - why you ask? The Germans say that the information will compromise arrangements between its security services and those of other countries. Right. A more likely explanation - it will expose all the countries and institutions that helped Eichmann escape to South America and avoid immediate justice.


9. The Shoah Never Goes Away - Mass graves of Nazi victims found



12. Gay Rights In The Middle East - maybe someone should tell all the human rights-loving lefties about this - but it likely still would not change their perception of Israel - CIC Scene » “Israel Is The Only Place In The Mideast I Can Live Openly Gay”.

This is Israel


This is Iran


14. Gilad Shalit - EJP | News | France | EU parliament urges Hamas immediate release of Gilad Shalit. Imagine if he was an Arab held captive by Israel under the same conditions......



16. Professor Barry Rubin - I often link to Professor Rubin's articles. Here is a link to a lecture of his at the University of Toronto - RubinReports: Explaining the Middle East: A Lecture - the lecture itself is rather long and I have only started to watch it, but I anticipate that it will certainly put things in the proper perspective.

17. This Pretty Much Closes The Book On The Canada-US Gold Medal Game - Canada owns the podium at the White House


18. Hey, Baseball Season Is Almost Here!

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Wednesday, March 10, 2010

1. A Surprising View From The Other Side - Yalla Peace: 'Apartheid week’ or ‘weakness’?
Wrong!
The sign below is an example of Apartheid - show me where there is any similar sign in Israel......


2. Celebrating The IDF - well, not everybody celebrated - there were the usual grab bag of the usual suspects who showed up - Chesler Chronicles » Waltzing at the Waldorf: Israeli Solders Face Another Kind of War

(don't let the facts get in the way)


4. Hate Is In The Air - after the Madrid attacks, one might think that Spain might understand what the battle is all about - guess not - Editorial: The Spanish disease.


5. I'm Really Surprised - EU Parliament backs Goldstone Report.




"This is a tactic the Left always uses: repeat the lie enough times, and anyone will hopefully believe it, especially if the target is Israel or the United States."

9. What A Shame - another terrorist has gone to hell. We'll do out best to send your buddies along soon.



"Because Mr. Obama and his administration can't do anything to punish an enemy, they'll try to punish a friend by extracting a promise from Israel to learn to live with the neighborhood nuclear outlaw. Nobody at the White House puts it quite that way. Not yet. What Mr. Obama wants now is Israel's connivance in "toughening" sanctions against Iran and its accelerating nuclear program but exempting China and maybe Brazil (and eventually anyone else) from obeying the sanctions. This is such a transparent farce that only a puffed-up windbag like good old Joe would undertake such a mission to Jerusalem."
12. Mystery Solved! - Crosby's golden stick and glove finally recovered - Posted Sports - phew! - just when I was about to call Miss Marple, Lieutenant Columbo, Matlock, the boys from CSI (all the shows) and Jessica Fletcher (Murder, She Wrote).

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Tuesday, March 9, 2010 #2

1. Rachel Corrie - You may recall that Rachel Corrie was a young American member of the International Solidarity Movement who died in Gaza in March 2003. Not surprisingly, the circumstances of her death are bitterly contested by the ISM and the IDF, though it would seem that there is little doubt that she was acting as a human shield in a very dangerous place. A civil trial in the US against Caterpillar Tractor (for supplying the tractors to Israel to be used in contravention of international law) was dismissed. A lawsuit in Israel against the IDF and the Israeli Defense Ministry is poised to start tomorrow.



Here are my observations.
  • while her death is unfortunate to tragic, depending on your perspective, she was the author of her own misfortune. It is naive to think that she could act in this manner in a highly dangerous area without risking death or serious injury.
  • I would like to know where else in the world but in the liberal democracies could the lawsuits in question be permitted, and perhaps even seen as normal? Haven't heard a lot about lawsuits in Russia for what was done in Chechnya, in China for what was done in Tibet, or in Iran for what was done to its own people protesting a rigged election. As usual, everyone criticizes the structure of the liberal democracies until they can find a way to use it to their advantage. Guys, you cannot have your cake and eat it too.
  • it seems pretty clear that whatever Ms. Corrie thought she was doing, she and her buddies were being cynically used by the Palestinians for their own purposes. A Hamas activist stated to the Observer newspaper that ""[Corrie's] death serves me more than it served her. Going in front of the tanks was heroic. Her death will bring more attention than the other 2,000 martyrs."
  • in the article below, there is a picture of an apparently very angry Corrie (apparently wearing a head covering of some sort like that worn by many Muslim women - I guess she went along to get along - did she protest this or actively embrace it?) burning an American flag. Notice the audience of young children. Was that her style of activism - promoting hatred of her native country in front of children? Did she ever try to counter the unbelievable antisemitism that is rampant in the Palestinian media and education system? Did she preach love for her fellow human being, regardless of religion or nationality?
  • Corrie's parents have tried to say that the use of this flag burning picture was some sort of attempt to justify her death and that in essence that she received the death penalty for that act. Sure. Sorry - that is a bunch of foolishness - the two acts are separate, though it does show that Corrie was not the little angel she is portrayed to be. They also assert that she had the flag because the children she was working with had drawn 2 flags - one Israeli and one American - and that while she would not burn the Israeli flag because of the Star of David, she felt it OK to burn the American flag. Right. Can someone please tell me why Palestinian children in Gaza would be drawing US and Israeli flags? Call me cynical - but I don't think it was part of their world geography class.
So I am not particularly overwhelmed with sympathy for her or her family - especially since her death has been exploited as a propaganda tool against Israel. She put herself or allowed herself to be put in that position. This was not some sit-in of a college campus in the US, nor a protest outside a coffee store for not selling free-trade coffee. This was inserting oneself into an extremely dangerous place and then paying the price. You want to stick your nose into someone else's business - better be careful.

According to the legal maxim - volenti non fit injuria - which basically means that if someone willingly places themselves in a position where harm might result, knowing that some degree of harm might result, they cannot then sue if harm actually results - Hey Rachel - if the shoe fits.....

My final word - in this case, theory met reality. As is often the case, reality won. Case closed.




4. A Box Of Matza Costs What? - The High Cost of Jewish Living

5. This Makes Me Nervous - Biden reassures Israel on Teheran


6. Book Review - The Israeli Peace Movement: A Shattered Dream written by Tamar Hermann and reviewed by Benny Morris - Peace, Processed - by Benny Morris > Tablet Magazine - A New Read on Jewish Life.


7. Book Review #2 - Moses Montefiore: Jewish Liberator, Imperial Hero written by Abigail Green and reviewed by Adam Kirsch - Orthodox Liberal - by Adam Kirsch > Tablet Magazine - A New Read on Jewish Life




9. Good Old Iran - I would really rather blog about other things.....


11. Turkey - some interesting stories:
12. Nice Deed - a friend of mine who is vacationing in Florida helped rescue a stranded bottle-nose dolphin - way to go! My mind then immediately leaped to this Seinfeld classic moment.

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