Monday, July 19, 2010 - Tisha b'Av edition

This is a brief edition to mark Tisha b'Av.


For those unfamiliar, the day marks the date that both the First and Second Temples were destroyed, causing some to refer to the day as the "saddest day in Jewish history." (and, unfortunately, there is lots of competition). Many other tragedies are said to have occurred on the same day, such as:
  • the sin of the 12 spies (but not Joshua or Caleb) in disparaging the Promised Land of Canaan;
  • the razing of Jerusalem in 70 CE;
  • the failure of the Bar Kochba revolt;
  • the declaration of the First Crusade, with disastrous consequences for the Jews of France and Germany;
  • the expulsion of Jews from England in 1290;
  • the expulsion of Jews from Spain in 1492;
  • the start of World War I, which set the stage for World War II and the Shoah;
  • (on the eve of Tisha b'Av) the start of the deportation of the Jews of the Warsaw Ghetto for the death factory of Treblinka; and
  • the attack on the Jewish Community Centre in Buenos Aires, resulting in the death of 86 people and the wounding of 300 more.

Here are some links to sites appropriate for the day:
(the infamous Umschlagplatz in Warsaw, where the Jews of the Warsaw Ghetto were put on trains for Treblinka - I had nightmares about this place)

(the attack on the Jewish Community Centre in Buenos Aires)




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Sunday, July 18, 2010 - Dog Days of Summer Edition

There will be a little of everything on today's post - it's just one of those days.

1. And Israel Has Made Peace With Jordan - Somehow, this never makes the press nor incurs the wrath of the MSM or the self-righteous liberals - Jordan's Queen writes children's book about tolerance and openness -- but not for Jews - Jihad Watch


3. What Do You Think Of This, Part I? Is it funny? Is it disrespectful? Is it scandalous? (you can tell what the person who posted the video on YouTube Thought). IDF soldiers face penalty after uploading Hebron dance video to YouTube - Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News. My sense is that it was humorous and was likely intended as an internal joke - no one was being taunted, etc. - but I can understand that the IDF would not be amused.


4. What Do You Think Of This, Part II? While I can understand why some people are upset, my initial reaction is that if I survived Auschwitz, I would have the right to celebrate my survival pretty much as I thought fit - which may not at all be the way another survivor might do so.







8. He Doesn't Just Dislike Jews - Chavez: Venezuela rethinking relations with Vatican






12. Punk'd - I do not even know what to say about this other than it does not take much to get David Irving to open his vile pie-hole:


13. Or Mel For That Matter - though he has the support of Whoopi Goldberg (I think that if she ever had it, Whoopi has now lost it), so that must count for something - next he'll have Rosie O'Dingbat on his side:





14. More Cartoons -





15. Baseball In The Modern Age:


16. Quick Hands


17. Those Airlines Charge For Everything!


18. This Makes Me Laugh - superstition in the locker room (not sure where the subtitles come from - Finnish?):


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Wednesday, July 14, 2010

1. Idiot #1 - Louis Farrakhan - Farrakhan Demands Reparations from Jews - Daniel Pipes - National Review Online




3. The National Post - no one can doubt the conservative nature of Canada's National Post newspaper. Thankfully, it stands as a bulwark against a lot of the ridiculous left-wing thought expressed in other places - especially the CBC. Here are 2 examples of recent editorials that illustrate my point:

4. Rev Up The Bus... - looks like NASA Administrator Charles Bolden will be the next guy thrown under the Obama-bus - White House denies NASA remark on Muslim outreach - Yahoo! News.

Personally, I find it hard to believe that Bolden made the whole thing up. But it raises a bigger question - Pajamas Media » Should NASA Send a Man to Mecca?


5. The War on Terror - and one of its Canadian faces - Pajamas Media » Do We Need a War on Terror? and Khadr’s no angel | Comment | Ottawa Sun



7. The Threat Of Iran - Iran threatens world -- and itself

8. Diplomatic Foolishness - that is business as usual at the UN - the answer is - "Blame the Torpedo" - what was the question? Since articles from the Wall Street Journal can be hard to link to, I have reproduced the entire piece here:

"When is a condemnation really a form of diplomatic rehabilitation? When it's delivered by the U.N. Security Council, which on Friday denounced the March sinking of the South Korean ship the Cheonan without denouncing anyone in particular for having sunk it.

It's as if the attack was a Sherlock Holmes mystery about a murder without a body. Never mind that everyone in the world knows that the Cheonan was sunk by a North Korean torpedo, killing 46 sailors in one of the worst acts of aggression since the Korean War ended nearly 60 years ago. A May report by a panel of global experts convened by South Korea to investigate the sinking left no doubt that the North perpetrated the act, despite Pyongyang's denials.

Seoul went to the Security Council to seek the global rebuke of the North, but China objected to a resolution that specifically blamed its clients in Pyongyang. Thus the Security Council retreated to writing a resolution that condemned the act of aggression but named no aggressor. Apparently the rogue underwater missile targeted and then launched itself against the South Korean vessel. I, Torpedo.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Susan Rice tried to make the best of this embarrassment by saying the message to the North was "crystal clear" and that "The Security Council condemns and deplores this attack. It warns against any further attacks. And insists on full adherence to the Korean Armistice Agreement."

The torpedo couldn't be reached for comment, but the North Koreans quickly claimed what a spokesman called a "great diplomatic victory" because the U.N. had failed to back up South Korea's allegations against the North. "We have made it clear that this incident had nothing to do with us," he said.

More amazing still, the resolution that didn't bark is being hailed as a deft way to lure North Korea back to the six party talks over its nuclear program. Follow the logic: Since the North wasn't condemned for doing what everyone knows it did, the North's leaders might now be appeased enough to return to the nuclear talks they walked out of last year. Sink a ship, and gain new diplomatic respect. If former U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. John Bolton had predicted this scenario, the New York Times would have accused him of trying to undermine the credibility of the U.N.

It would be nice if we could dismiss the U.N. as a land of meaningless make-believe, but too many people, including the Obama Administration, imbue the U.N. with moral authority and the Security Council with the power to enforce collective global security. A body that refuses even to speak obvious truths about a murderous act, much less do anything about it, deserves no such authority, much less respect."


9. Life On The Edge - While all the armchair quarterbacks around the world (including me) on all sides express their opinions about the possibilities of the next war in Gaza or in the Galil/Golan, more than anyone else, the people who live there have to face up to the fact that yet again they will literally be on the front line. In my defence, at least I have been to both spots several times and have a sense of how close these areas are to Gaza and Southern Lebanon respectively. I also know that the IDF does everything it can to protect its own civilians, rather than cynically use them as shields. In any event, this is a very sobering article that should remind us of the real people affected by the conflict - Sheltering for the Next War.


10. Flotilla Wrap-Up - The probe into the raid on the Mavi Marmara has wrapped up and issued its report. Here are some summaries from 3 different sources - IDF blames intelligence for Gaza flotilla 'mistakes', but defends use of commandos - Haaretz Daily Newspaper | Israel News, IDF probe: Army didn't have ‘Plan B’ for flotilla op and BBC News - Press: No surprises in Israel flotilla report (a summary of various reports).

11. Hitch - I link to Christopher Hitchens when I agree with him, so it is only fair that I do so when I do not. Why is the U.S. Treasury Department subsidizing zealots who oppose our foreign-policy objectives? - By Christopher Hitchens - Slate Magazine.

12. Seeking Justice - Undercover avenger

13. This Link Is Old By Today's Instant Standards - I received this link from several people but did not get the chance to post it - Middle East and Terrorism: Europe's Envy :Why Europeans Loathe America and Israel.

14. Potpourri - like the category of the same name on Jeopardy! I save a variety of links to review in more detail before deciding whether to post them - here is a completely mixed bag of links that I have saved but not yet posted (not to take away from their importance):

15. It Is People Like This Who Make History - Doctor of legendary ‘Exodus’ ship dies at 86


16. And People Like This - one of the last Canadians to die in combat during World War II - Lt. Robert Hampton Gray - Veterans Affairs Canada


17. The Boss Is Dead - George Steinbrenner, the owner of the New York Yankees and widely known simply as "The Boss", died yesterday at age 80. Some people would suggest that he died on the day of the annual All-Star Game just to upstage it and garner attention for himself. Love him or hate him - and I'd fall into the latter category - his contribution to major league baseball as we know it today is unquestioned. Here are a couple of stories about this controversial man - Joe Posnanski » Posts George Steinbrenner « and Championships and chaos reigned in the Bronx Zoo of the 1970s - MLB - SI.com.

He must have had a sense of humor - there was a recurring parody of him in episodes of Seinfeld (voiced by Larry David - no relation - LOL) that he must have tolerated, since he apparently made no move to try to block it. Check out this link - and here is one scene I have never seen until today (it was a deleted scene from a Seinfeld episode):


18. Comic Relief:

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Shavuah Tov - Saturday, July 10, 2010

1. Wow! - SARCASM ALERT - I have to take back all of the things I previously said about the United Nations - the UN has sprung into action and condemned the sinking of the South Korean naval vessel.....U.N. condemns sinking of South Korean warship – This Just In - CNN.com Blogs

But - wait - upon further review - maybe I am wrong......(a) the sinking took place on March 26 and the condemnation happened July 9 - well - 105 days is very quick for the UN (as long as Israel is not involved, in which case 105 minutes is slow) and (b) the UN did not name who was being condemned (the UN never seems to have a problem condemning Israel by name)


2. Asleep At The Switch - Seems to me like the President is asleep at the switch - Just after Abbas calls on Arab states to war against Israel, Obama calls him and expresses "strong support" for his "commitment to peace" - Jihad Watch. Never believe what these guys say to your face - believe what they say to their own people.

For more on the President and the Middle East:
3. Another Terrorist Dies An Unfortunate Peaceful Death - "Don't be fooled" by tributes to "moderate" Hizballah cleric - Jihad Watch - and in related news - Nazi SS officer dies prior to trial


4. I Am More Shocked At The Reaction Than The Cause - Britain pulls Hezbollah blog post by its ambassador to Lebanon - CNN.com

5. To Wit - Pajamas Media » The Hidden Costs of Jew-Baiting in England -I had the pleasure of meeting Professor Rhynold last May at a conference at Bar-Ilan University - he could not escape me as I sat next to him.


6. I Am More Shocked At The Reaction Than The Cause, Part II - CNN fires Mideast editor who praised Hizballah cleric - Jihad Watch

7. Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps - these are the bastards that uphold the [fill in desired adjectives] Iranian regime. Not sure if they would be any good militarily fighting an opponent that does not consist of unarmed Iranian dissidents and the like - maybe they will turn to butter like Saddam Hussein's vaunted Republican Guard.


In the meantime, it is clear as noted above that they have to be dealt with in some manner. Here are 2 stories about them - Dissent in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards | FrontPage Magazine and Iranian turned US spy: Tehran will attack Israel - Israel News, Ynetnews


9. Let's See What Else You've Got - Muslim group praises hate-crime charges for GTA blogger Posted National Post. Bernie Farber is dead-on with this comment:

"Bernie Farber, CEO of the Canadian Jewish Congress, said the fact that the council is now voicing its condemnation of Mr. Hossain is a “surprise.”

“They haven’t done this in the past, so it is a surprise, but it would be absurd for them not to have supported the charges,” Mr. Farber said. “When CAIR-CAN comes out and condemns hateful terms like Israel apartheid, then I’ll stand up and take notice. Coming out against Salman Hossain is easy.”

10. I Love This Story - Brave Soldier - by Marc Grossberg > Tablet Magazine - A New Read on Jewish Life - maybe this is a relative of some sort - Louisiana Jew


12. There Aren't Many Countries Where This Happens - IDF indicts Cast Lead soldiers and Israeli soldier charged in deaths of civilians

13. Words Fail Me - NASA Does Muslim Outreach




14. Hezbollah And Southern Lebanon - Pajamas Media » Hezbollah Takes Southern Lebanon Hostage - but do not say anything! That is more dangerous according to the UN Secretary-General - Commentary » Blog Archive » Shut Up, Ban Ki-Moon Explained

15. One-Liners - Commentary » Blog Archive » In Brief. Here is another good one from Victor Davis Hanson:
"Some vice presidential wisdom: most might now think it to be safer to go hunting with Dick Cheney than to be in a hotel room with Al Gore."
16. The Mindset is Clear - Is it only Israel that can see the types of "people" with whom it has to negotiate? Here are 3 pretty good examples of their thought process - Mastermind of Park Hotel terror attack: No regrets - Israel News, Ynetnews, Saudi king: "Two states in region do not deserve to exist: Israel and Iran" - Jihad Watch and Preparing for 3rd Intifada - Israel News, Ynetnews

17. Gay Pride - the controversial Toronto Gay Pride march took place last week. I categorize the march as "controversial" not because of the gay rights issue, but rather (in case you did not hear) because of the intended protest against "Israel Apartheid". Here are a variety of stories to close off that issue:
18. The Wait Is Over - I am not much of a fan of the business side of sports, which, in my opinion, has largely ruined it. The most egregious example was the end of the LeBron James free agency saga. I have no issue with his decision to go play for the Miami Heat - the issue is the way that he went about it.


If you have followed the story at all, then you know that after James issued his decision (on an ESPN special broadcast no less), the majority owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers issued an open letter that absolutely tore into James. From the satire department, here is the first draft of the letter - The first draft of Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert's open letter upon LeBron James' departure to Miami. - By Josh Levin - Slate Magazine.

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