Saturday, December 4, 2010 - Motzei Shabbat

1. Blaze Update - As noted in yesterday's posting, Hanukkah has been deeply overshadowed by the terrible fire in the Carmel region of Israel near Haifa.

It is hard for someone who has never been to Israel to understand the devastating nature of this tragedy, and I am sure that my explanatory comments that follow would pale alongside that written by someone who lives in Israel, especially in the affected area.


As I have often stressed, Israel is a tiny geographic entity, which, defined by its pre-1967 borders, consists of about 8,000 square miles. A fire of this magnitude is not like some naturally-caused wildfire in, for example, a remote region of British Columbia (which, for example, consists of just under 365,000 square miles - even Nova Scotia consists of 21,345 square miles). The amount of arable land in Israel is very limited, and forests are very important to Israel's ecology - a fire of this type has a disproportionate impact.

As well, I think that there is a strong symbolic issue. When Jewish pioneers started to return to what was then known as Palestine, one of their prime efforts was to plant trees - including the use of eucalyptus trees to help drain swamps. Growing up in a Jewish home, there was always the famous "Blue Box" into which we (and millions of fellow Jews around the world) placed spare change to help fund the planting of trees in Israel. The Jewish National Fund has achieved tremendous things in Israel, and the JNF has worked closely with many countries, including Canada, on forestry-related issues. Here is another example of the type of positive contribution that Israel makes to the world community - El Salvador to copy Israel's national forestry model | social-action.


If there is any silver lining to this very dark cloud, it would be that a number of nations have promptly offered aid (including Turkey, Jordan and Egypt) - Israel battles forest fire with foreign help - Yahoo! News and Grateful prime minister hails international response - much in the same way that Israel has when disasters occur in other countries (even if sometimes the aid is refused). Prime Minister Netanyahu and Mahmoud Abbas have had one of their rare telephone conversations over the issue, and the PA has lent some support - PA lends firefighters a hand - Israel News, Ynetnews. However, the tragedy has "delighted" certain groups - Northern blaze delights many in the Arab world - the usual suspects, one might say:

"There is no need to tell you how delighted we are that more than 40 cadets who tortured prisoners were killed in this fire. We never met with your compassion when Israel attacked us. Let the fire consume (Israel)," he said.
Not that it would matter to Islamic Jihad in the least, but for the record, the cadets who died were on their way to rescue Palestinian prisoners who were in a facility threatened by the fire.

2. She's Probably Delighted As Well - Helen Thomas stands by remarks about Israelis | detnews.com | The Detroit News - what a wonderful human being.





6. The Shoah - A number of interesting pieces about the Shoah:


8. Demographic Difficulties - Counting Jews

"Israel is a nation that dwells alone, with few friends and many prejudiced enemies. Rather than Rabbis and lay leaders attacking Christians as having nefarious motives for their charity, we should offer thanks and gratitude to hard-working Americans (and Canadians - my note) of faith who believe, as the Bible says, that through Israel all the earth is blessed."
10. An Important Anniversary - before the UN had turned into the corruption machine of today, a vote of the United Nations General Assembly made a run at the original two-state solution - the Jews of Palestine accepted, the Arabs didn't - and the rest is not only history, but current events.


Also see this article by Michael B. Oren - the Israeli Ambassador to the United States.



12. Well, It Is Hanukkah - so despite the tragedy in the Carmel, let's try to celebrate a little bit:

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Friday, December 3, 2010 - Tragedy in the Carmel

This is a very brief blog posting to bring this terrible tragedy to your attention.
We wish strength and perseverance to the firefighters battling this terrible wildfire, reportedly the worst in Israel's history, and hope that the fire can been brought under control soon. We express solidarity with the thousands of evacuees. We thank other nations that have responded with aid - including Turkey.

May HaShem comfort the families of the dead among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.



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Special Hanukah Edition - Wednesday, December 1, 2010



1. Hanukkah - There seem to be a million ways to spell the name of this holiday - in the interests of simplicity, I'm going with "Hanukkah" - eight letters for eight days!

Just as many Christians believe that the commercial aspects of Christmas have overwhelmed its religious significance, I believe that people overlook the importance of Hanukkah. (And no, Hanukkah is not the "Jewish Christmas).

Here's a basic overview that even includes a recipe - Hanukkah: Not Just Dreidels, Latkes and Gelt - Tarrytown-Sleepy Hollow, NY Patch. Here's insight form Jewish "rapper" Matisyahu - Matisyahu's 8 Chanukah Insights

Personally, I like this article - The Chanukah Question - that ends with a message that it as important now as it was in the time of Judah Maccabee - and which summarizes quite nicely why I post to this blog:

"The place to stand up for your beliefs is the public realm. In the home, yield, yield, yield.

If you are chronically tardy, and your spouse likes to arrive everywhere 15 minutes early, yield. Ask yourself, "What is his/her reality?" and validate it.

If you are a spendthrift and your spouse is frugal, yield. Ask yourself, "What is his/her reality?" and validate it.

If your idea of a vacation is a five-star hotel, and your children want to vacation in the national parks, ask yourself, "What is their reality?" and validate it. Then decide what is best for the whole family.

But in the public realm, when Judaism, Jews, or Israel are under attack, stand up and fight! That's the lesson of Chanukah." (my emphasis, though not my spelling of Hanukkah!)

Here's an example of someone who took this lesson to heart - this has been all over the Internet, but in case you have not read it - Issue 264 - UN Watch

Finally, you might find this video inspirational - Chanukah's Secret to Greatness -I certainly did.


2. Spin City - not the TV show that starred Michael J. Fox (and later, oh yeah, Charlie Sheen, that goof) - Major League Dreidel: A whole new spin on Hanukkah's favourite game


3. Hanukkah Food - not just latkes (which are a form of Jewish weapons of mass destruction...) - Hanukkah season of food, freedom :: Lifestyles :: Post-Tribune


4. Hanukkah Music - here is a link to some traditional Hanukkah songs - Chanukah Songs: Popular Favorites - though perhaps the days of "I Had a Little Dreidl" may be behind us - Anander Mol, Anander Veig - by Marc Weidenbaum Tablet Magazine - A New Read on Jewish Life.

If you are a Jewish heavy metal music type, try this (watch the volume!!):


5. Hanukkah Movies - in my humble opinion, avoid Adam Sandler's "Eight Crazy Nights" like it was a lobster wrapped in pork. Adam Goldberg's "The Hebrew Hammer" is funny, but only for certain tastes.




7. More WikiLeaks Analysis - check these out

Oh - and here's a flash - maybe people who live in glass houses.... - WikiLeaks founder 'wanted' by Interpol over rape claims - and if he goes into hiding, wouldn't it be poetic justice if someone "leaked" his whereabouts? (Here's what he looks like, by the way - and his name is Julian Assange)


8. This Is Different - A ‘self-hating’ Palestinian? A lot of people that are tagged as "self-hating Jew" are much more virulent.


10. Palestinian Bandstand - PA TV broadcasts song calling for Jihad against Israel: "Draw your sword, let it not return" - Jihad Watch - it's got a good beat and the kids can really dance to it.


11. Iran - A couple of items here to keep you up to speed:
12. Basketball - There seems to be a well-documented love of Jews for baseball - I have posted about that before. However, basketball is also a very popular sport with Jews - both in North America and in Israel. Here's more on that topic - The Greatest - by Marc Tracy Tablet Magazine - A New Read on Jewish Life.

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Tuesday, November 30, 2010

1. I Have to Take a Leak - one of the biggest stories over the weekend was the pending massive release of classified American government documents by WikiLeaks. I am not the biggest fan of government cover-ups or deliberate wrongdoing. That said, my general take of what this site does is very dangerous because it does not filter things and the operator of the site is apparently indifferent to the consequences that might reasonably be expected to result. There are many things that should remain confidential for many different reasons, and I doubt that WikiLeaks could possibly know the proper context behind certain documents - and I rather doubt that it cares. In any event, here is the initial assessment of the large "leak" over the weekend, especially as it relates to Israel and Iran.


2. Haven't We Heard This Type Of Thing Before? Oh yeah, Khartoum, 1967 and the infamous "Three NOs" - Fatah: No to Israel as Jewish state, no land swaps
3. Revisionism Gone Wild - endorsed by the lovelies at UNESCO (don't the children collect for UNESCO on Hallowe'en with those cute little orange boxes) - Keep Dreaming: A riddle for UNESCO


4. Revisionism Gone Wilder - absolutely unbelievable, but true - Palestinian revisionism is the only obstacle to peace - these guys should write fiction for the movies.


5. North Korea - another major story. Interesting to examine it in the context of world reaction to it compared to world reaction to attacks on Israel. Maybe there are no Palestinians in South Korea - but if you give them some time, the same guys who came up with the Rachel's Tomb and Western Wall foolishness will figure out that when South Korea was created after World War II, thousands and thousands of Palestinians were expelled - they will even come up with the obligatory picture of the old Palestinian man holding the keys to his house in "occupied South Korea". In any event:

8. But I'll Bet You Will Still Be Able To Get Body Piercings - Circumcision Could Become Illegal in San Francisco -- Can They Do That? - iVillage


9. Emptying the Vault - time to clear out the vault

10. Johnnie Walker - When I have a drink, which is a rather rare event, it would be Scotch, though my favorite is Glenmorangie (I would not turn down a Johnnie Walker Black by any means). Here is a great advertisement, apparently done in one take:


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