Soccer Dad

It depends on what the word "spat" means

The other night Israeli forces entered Gaza on the ground, something they hadn't done since the government evacuated all Jews from Gaza last summer. Meryl Yourish scores the Scotsman for describing the incident as a cross-border spat and writes further

In one fell swoop, the Scotsman downplays the threat of palestinian rockets — which have killed and wounded people, including palestinians who live near the border — and manage to accuse the IDF of being upset that they are unable to stop the rocket fire — not that the rockets are being fired to begin with. Yet another example of how palestinian crimes are utterly whitewashed and ignored, and Israeli self-defense actions are demonized.

The fact of this matter is that it was a purely military operation. IDF soldiers penetrated enemy territory to prevent the enemy from firing rockets into its civilian areas. The military action was successful. Terrorists were killed, with no collateral damage, and no harm done to the IDF soldiers. The soldiers went in, did their job, killed the enemy combatants, and got out unharmed.

But you wouldn’t know it from reading the Scotsman piece.

If the reporting of this incident weren't bad enough, several bloggers have noted problems with the photographs and followup too.

Backspin shows a picture of a dead terrorist next to a rocket launcher and wonders if the news people had been tipped off ahead of the attack on Israel. Backspin links to similar incidents where it appears that the reporters were at the scene to publicize a terror attack - doing the bidding of terrorists, as opposed to simply stumbling upon a newsworthy event.

AbbaGav anticipated that after these terrorists were killed in the process of a terrorist attack the news services would focus on the grief their relatives expressed once they were killed! (The news services didn't report on the grief felt by relatives of a man and a woman who were lynched. Of course in the case of the woman, her relatives might not be grieving because they were the ones who did her in. And then again since they were killed by fellow Palestinians not Israeli, there wouldn't be the same outpouring of grief. No cameras.)

Elder of Ziyon documents the way the grieving relatives were shown - context free. (They were relatives of men killed by Israel; no mention of what their relatives were doing when they were retired by Israeli forces.)

Technorati tags: Terrorism, Palestinian Authority, Media Bias.

It depends on what the word "main" means

According to Agence France-Presse Saudi King Abdullah is going to Egypt for talks with President Mubarak.

Those talks are due to focus on efforts to bring the Palestinians and Israelis back to the negotiation table, according to an Egyptian presidential spokesman.

And what role does Saudi Arabia play in the Middle East?

Saudi Arabia, a main aid donor to the Palestinians, has good relations with Fatah leaders but has also hosted Hamas officials since the movement's election victory.

Main aid donor? This didn't exactly sound right and my searches weren't giving me the relevant information. So I asked Elder of Ziyon. He had some success and e-mailed me this article that lists the donors to the PA

Major donors

EU and individual European nations: $570m - $270m for salaries of Palestinian workers and $300m for development and infrastructure projects.

US: $300m exclusively for development projects

Saudi Arabia: $46m

The figures were apparently for 2005. I suspect also that the Saudi contribution is the main contribution from the Arab world, but hardly significant compared to the Western contribution.

And of course that American money has acquired loads of goodwill among the Palestinians. Hamas enforcer rails against U.S. gov't tells us

In a back-alley interview, the top Hamas enforcer in the Gaza Strip railed against the U.S. government, said he's happy whenever American soldiers are killed and vowed not to take Hamas' 3,000-strong militia off the streets.

Jamal Abu Samhadana, a 43-year-old explosives expert, is a key target for Israel and moves stealthily, switching cars and hideouts, despite his promotion to security chief by the Hamas-led government.

In an interview Monday with The Associated Press, Abu Samhadana called the U.S. and Israeli-led boycott of the Hamas-run Palestinian Authority "cheap extortion" and said it will only serve "to make our people more attached to the government."

"The American government and people will pay a dear price for this aggressive and criminal policy against the Arab and Muslim people," he said.

Oh he's an explosives expert. What exactly is that a euphemism for? At least the AP does bring up (if only to dismiss) the most damning charge against Roseann Roseann Samhadana and his expertise

Sitting before a photo of an Islamic Jihad militant killed by Israel, the black-bearded Samhadana, himself one of the most renowned militants in the Palestinian territories, denied old allegations he was behind a deadly 2003 bombing of a U.S. Embassy convoy in Gaza that killed three American security guards.

I suspect that reporters have never seen the available evidence against Samhadana, but it's probably substantial and the allegations are current, not old.

(Question: Would any American reporter have accepted an invitation to interview Eric Rudolph when he was on the run? And if a journalist did would he/she have failed to divulge everything he/she knew about his whereabouts to authorities? I don't have an answer to the second. To the first, I suspect that most reporters would have considered Rudolph too repugnant to interview.)

Nor is Samhadana the only terrorist to get a nice promotion. Israel Matzav tells us that the "moderate" Mahmoud Abbas has recently promoted a terrorist, Mahmoud Damra, to his security forces too.

Technorati tags: Palestinian Authority, Terrorism, American aid.

A belated memorial day post

There were a few Memorial day posts worth mentioning.
Seraphic Secret remembers his father, the chaplain.

Blog D'Elisson writes of his feelings on Memorial Day as a Jew

Without America’s fighting men, whose courage and sacrifice in World War II helped tip the balance and ensure an Allied victory, this world would be a dark place...for our enemies had Big Plans, plans that did not include people like me.

And Life-of-Rubin punctuates that with the story of someone who wouldn't have been here without the American army (the story was told 10 years ago)

You were all so kind and so compassionate. But, my years in the camps, my weakened state of health, the forced death march, and my escape to freedom was more than a human body could bear any longer and I collapsed into the arms of you, my rescuing angels."

And of course SerAndEz has a roundup of Memorial Day posts. And let's not forget that he has a reflection on Memorial Day too.

Technorati tag: memorial day.

Awesome pictures

VodkaPundit at 11 Mile Lake Colorado
Fire Ant Gazette of a Night Storm

And this is awesome, in a much different way.

And though she doesn't do photography, Not Quite Perfect's images are great. Check out her most recent: K-Vortex, Galactic Spider and Apple Hunter.

Technorati tags: Photography, Images.

What citizenship entails

Colbert I King starts his Memorial Day column off in fine fashion

"Memorial Day Sale! Warehouse Is Stocked and Ready for Your Home"; "Memorial Day SALE plus EXTRA 15% OFF when you use your store card or pass"; "Memorial Day 1/2 Price Sale on Mattresses!"; "Memorial Day PIANO SALE"; "UNBELIEVABLE! STOREWIDE SAVINGS JUST IN TIME FOR THE HOLIDAY WEEKEND!"

-- Thursday newspaper ads

This cannot be what Maj. Gen. John A. Logan, national commander of the Grand Army of the Republic, had in mind when he officially proclaimed Memorial Day on May 5, 1868. His thought, as best I can tell, was to set aside a day to honor the war dead. The true meaning of Memorial Day, however, has been overcome by door-buster sales, backyard cookouts and the opportunity to get a little extra sleep.

It got me to thinking that one thing that impresses people about Israel is that on Yom Hazikaron in Israel, everything stops

Yom Hazikaron, the Israeli Memorial Day, is different in its character and mood from the American Memorial Day. For 24 hours (from sunset to sunset) all places of public entertainment (theaters, cinemas, nightclubs, pubs, etc.) are closed. The most noticed feature of the day is the sound of siren that is heard throughout the country twice, during which the entire nation observes a two-minutes "standstill" of all traffic and daily activities. The first siren marks the beginning of Memorial Day at 8:00 P.M., and the second is at 11:00 A.M., before the public recitation of prayers in the military cemeteries. All radio and television stations broadcast programs portraying the lives and heroic deeds of fallen soldiers. Most of the broadcasting time is devoted to Israeli songs that convey the mood of the day.

And it got me to thinking that maybe America would benefit from something similar. King notes later on that a resolution toward that end has been passed

Lest we forget: Congress put a "National Moment of Remembrance" resolution ( http://www.remember.gov/ ) on the books in December 2000 in the hope that America would return to the true meaning of Memorial Day. The resolution asks that in an act of national unity, Americans at 3 p.m. local time "voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a Moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to 'Taps.' "

Part of citizenship is an acceptance of a common heritage. The melting pot that is America assimilates many heritages, but there needs to be a central American heritage to hold the country together. This is the glue of society.

Another element that holds a society or nation together is language. Richard Cohen thinks there's an inevitability that all Americans will eventually learn English. Though he doens't say so explicitly presumably he's objecting to making English a national language.

It's reasonable, I suppose, to insist on English-sufficiency for citizenship or even for a driver's license. But the nation's so-called political conversation can be conducted in any language -- just as long as it's conducted. The Jews, the Italians, the Chinese, the Russians, the Germans and all the other ethnic groups who once lived cheek by jowl in Manhattan had a vibrant press and raised the roof with their political conversation. Now their descendants rue, as I do, the virtual loss of a tongue. Henry Adams need not have feared. I can read him but not the contemporaries he so reviled.

But Jeff Jacoby disagrees

Instead of a national commitment to assimilation, a cynical multiculturalism sends the message that our culture is no better than any other, so there is no particular reason to embrace the American experience. ''Bilingual" education and foreign-language ballots accelerate the loss of a common English tongue, making it easier than ever for newcomers to cluster in linguistic ghettoes. Identity politics erodes the national identity, encouraging immigrants to see themselves first and foremost as members of racial or ethnic groups, and only secondarily as individuals and Americans.

Adopting the symbols of one's new nation need not mean supplanting or even superceding one's previous commitments - be they religious or national in nature. But the new symbols must be there. It's part of becoming a citizen.

Technorati tags: memorial day, Citizenship, Immigration.

Department of silly pictures 05/29/2006

AbbaGav in his comments thinks that this guy looks like an

Imperial Storm Trooper cross bred with an Ent

. The caption reads

A Palestinian armed militant of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, an armed offshoot of the former ruling Fatah party

My own feeling was that he looks organic enough to be the character played by Stephen King in "The Lonely Death of Jordy Verrill."

The caption for this picture was fascinating

Masked Palestinian militants from the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the armed wing of the Fatah movement, hold up their weapons during a rally in support of the 'national dialogue' in the West Bank city of Nablus May 25, 2006. Rival Palestinian movements began a two-day 'national dialogue' on Thursday, an urgent attempt to bridge differences that have pushed the Hamas-led government and its opponents into open conflict.

Remember Hillary Clintons "listening tour?" As much as I might have derided it at the time, I recall that she really did go and listen and didn't bring any firearms with her.
"National dialogue" sounds as benign as "listening tour," but when the dialogue is carried out by masked men with rifles, it seems rather ominous. Doesn't it?

The guy in this picture is interesting

A militant of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades, a militia linked to the Fatah movement, drives a scooter in the Old City of the West Bank town of Nablus, on his way to a march in support Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas Thursday, May 25, 2006.

Correct me if I'm wrong but isn't that a sniper's scope on his rifle? Is he going to the march as a participant? Or to pick off counterprotesters?

Does this look like marching to you?

Hamas militia members march after they evacuated Gaza's streets May 26, 2006.

It looks like these guys are dancing. Especially the guy in the left foreground. The lot of them, despite the guns, look rather light on their feet. But they're not doing the usual goose step, so it's hard to think of them as marching.

We read here that

The gunfight left one police officer dead and four others wounded in the latest outbreak of internal Palestinian fighting, doctors and witnesses said.

No word on the thousands of mourners who came to protest the violence.

Imagine that!

But when four terrorists are killed by Israel we learn

Thousands of people attended the funerals of four Palestinians who were shot dead during an Israeli operation in the West Bank town of Ramallah one day earlier.

So do you think that they showed up out of grief? Or because they knew where the cameras and reporters would be?

Technorati tags: Media Bias, Hamas, Palestinian Authority.

Military monday #1

This post by Bookworm Room reminds me of the heroism and nobility that American soldiers continually display and that, all too often is ignored, or disregarded by the MSM.

I'd like to start a feature, or maybe a carnival about these missing stories about soldiers for America and other good guys. These stories are readily available for those who wish to find them.

Let me start with this link from Seraphic Secret, Keeping kosher in Saddam's Palace. It's the story of Lieutenant Junior Grade Laurie Zimmet as she tells it.

My boots have walked through the kind of sun and heat most associate with scorpions and death in all those Sahara movies from the 1940's, and my boots have trounced through water and mud, lots of mud. I'm looking at my boots and the one thing I can't shake loose from my mind is how in the world did I end up this way -- still single, no children, serving in a war, again? Why am I wearing these boots?

Please don't misunderstand me. I am honored to serve our country, proud to wear the cloth of our nation, and mine is an exciting job. Once again, as in 2003, I am assigned to an Intelligence unit -- a unit that goes after truly evil people. I do feel like I'm doing good for God, especially since these same people we go after not only harbor a disdain for America and all she holds dear, but not surprisingly, they abhor Israel as well, and most especially the Jews.

Read the whole thing.

Now they tell us

Backspin links to an article in the L.A. Times explaining how Arafat operated

In life, Arafat was able, though barely, to keep a lid on Palestinian infighting. He played one powerful lieutenant against another, cracked down hard on unruly factions and bought fealty with large and largely untraceable sums of cash.

And it's not a new thing. Graham Usher, no Zionist stooge, reported back in 1997 Arafat Revives Tribal Power

"Since the PA was installed in 1994, Arafat has based his rule on two crucial constituencies. One was his Fatah movement, many of whose cadres were absorbed into the PA's burgeoning and often lawless security forces. But the other was Arafat's deliberate reempowerment of Palestine's traditional or tribal families, like the Abu Samhadanahs or, for that matter, the Al-Dhairs. In Rafah, the two constituencies have become one,
with tribal and political loyalties so interwoven as to be inseparable.

Unfortunately most reporters didn't pay much attention to Arafat's machinations and corruption, instead focusing on Israel's supposed missteps in the quest for peace. Even the most dovish Israeli government couldn't have made peace with the PA. I suppose it's better late than never.

I'd question this assertion of the L.A. Times report though

But Arafat's moderate-minded successor, Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, has neither the inclination nor the dictatorial powers to intimidate security chiefs into unquestioning loyalty.

Last week's clashes showed that Fatah is willing to stand up for itself. Fatah has (I believe) ten times as many armed men as Hamas. Abbas may not be as flamboyant as Arafat, but I believe he's just about as Machiavellian.

Other items about Arafat in Soccer Dad.

UPDATE: Shlemazl makes a couple of reasonable comments below

Yes, but it's not the size that matters. It's commitment and disciplin. Fatah appears to have neither.

I agree to a point. However a significant advantage in materiel, I think, can overcome commitment and discipline. What made me think this was this item from last week

Hamas militias run for cover during a gunfight with Palestinian security forces loyal to President Mahmoud Abbas in the Sabra neighborhood, in Gaza City.

I think superior firepower does, indeed, matter.

He also notes

Abbas has been in power for quite some time now. What has he actually done?

On the other hand, he has survived as one of the top members of a terrorist organization for over 3 decades. Staying out of trouble will only take you so far in such a millieu. Another quality he undoubtedly has to possess is ruthlessness, his urbane appearance notwithstanding.

Remember that Mohammed Dahlan is on Abbas's side. Dahlan may be also possess a sophistication that impresses impressionable western reporters but he is as brutal as they come.
Why is Abbas making his move now? Probably because Hamas has overplayed its hand by openly supporting terror and has also been weakened by being denied some level of aid. Now's the time to strike when Hamas is on the defensive.

UPDATE II: Maybe than firepower gap isn't as great as I thought.

Technorati tags: Terrorism, PLO, Arafat.

Great moments of marital bliss

Every once in a while you read of a truly touching example of Islamic respect for women.

A man helps his wife with a shroud while attending a ceremony to sign up volunteers as suicide bombers in support of the Palestinian people at a cemetery in Tehran.

What happens after these two shahids detonate themselves. He gets 72 more women? What does she get?

And, I guess, this isn't true.

UPDATE:For more commentary (or more precisely no commentary) on this lovely ceremony check out Shlemazl blog.

UPDATE II: Featured in this week's Carnival of the Insanities.

UPDATE III: Featured in the Bullwinkle Blog's Sunday Funnies.

Technorati tags: Terrorism, Islam, Iran.

Havel Havalim #71 is UP!

West Bank Mama has posted Haveil Havalim #71, nothing boring about that because the J-Blogosphere is obsessed with what's going on.

To West Bank Mama and the many hosts and hostesses who have been so generous with their time, thank you for volunteering and having volunteered; you're the ones who do the work to keep this project going!

If there are any volunteers out there for future editions of Haveil Havalim please let me know. It's a lot of work, but 9 out of 10 hosts seem to enjoy it!

UPCOMING Hosts/Hostesses:

#72 - June 4 - the day after Shavous, Jack's Shack - email him at talktojacknow at sbcglobal dot net.
#73 - June 11 - CONFIRMED Perspectives of a Nomad has volunteered for another go round as host. e-mail him at scottage at rochester dot rr dot com.
#74 - June 18 - A new hostess (via SerAndEz), Blue Diary has volunteered.

In addition to e-mail you may submit entries to Haveil Havalim using either Conservative Cat's handy dandy submission form or the submission form over at BlogCarnival.

Listed at the Truth Laid Bear Ubercarnival.

Technorati Tags: Blog carnivals, haveil havalim, Israel, Judaism.

Most recent editions of Haveil Havalim at Blog Carnival
#22 Mystical Paths
#21 Rabbinical Authority Consortium of HACKers
#20 Shiloh Musings
#19 Devarim
#18 Soccer Dad
#17 Mystical Paths
#16 Critical Mastiff
#15 Soccer Dad
#14 Multiple Mentality
#13 IsraPundit
#12 DovBear
#11 Kesher Talk
#10 Biur Chametz
#9 Soccer Dad
#8 It's Almost Supernatural
#7 Bloghead
#6 Willow Tree.
#5 Crossing the Rubicon2
#4 Dov Bear
#3 Biur Chametz

Friday morning fun

Fire Ant Gazette reviews a book about blogging and pans it for a stupid mistake.

Colossus of Rhodey.Hube lists the many diverse ways to experience diversity.

Blog D'Elisson sees a river flow two directions at once.

Mirty's Place has some Word Thoughts and word fun.

Which for some reason reminds me of a definition of understand: What not to do to a flock of pigeons.

Elie's Expositions notes the birthdays of two celebrities. If you combined the lyrics of one with the speech patterns of the other would you get:

You dressed so fine, upon at time, once, you did
In your prime, the bums a dime you threw, you didn't?

Well I tried. I know, there is no "try" there is only "do."
But strangely he didn't detect the birtday of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.

And as a treat for you eyes some recent art by Not Quite Perfect: Check out (especially) Blue Eyes and Golden Pearl.

Technorati tags: Bob Dylan, Frank Oz, Arthur Conan Doyle, Puns, Diversity.

Times zero

Today the New York Times treated us to an editorial A Viable Palestinian State. Briefly Barry Rubin describes this editorial

The bottom line is that the Times does not understand Israel's new strategy, does not understand Hamas, has a poor grasp of the facts, and will never actually praise Israel and its efforts--neutral and anti are the only two positions in the Times editorial gear box. What a pitiful performance.

( I believe that Mediacrity would describe this as the Sulzburger Indifference Template.)

Backspin wonders what's bothering the editors of the Times. Did they just discover that Gaza and Judea and Samaria are not contiguous?

Israel Matzav argues that because they aren't contiguous

That's it folks. The elephant in the room is that even if the 'Palestinians' get all of the 'West Bank' and Gaza, they still won't have a contiguous 'state'. Judea and Samaria (the 'West Bank') are landlocked. How are they going to develop an economy (assuming that they have any interest in doing so)? . . .

The truth is that there cannot be a 'viable Palestinian state' in the 'West Bank' and Gaza. The territory is not suitable for it.

AbbaGav nicely reduces the editorial to the point of absurdity

But it takes a naive sophistication indeed to criticize Israel even for unilaterally withdrawing from territories from which the Palestinians themselves have long demanded withdrawal. At the rate this is going, the next Israeli government could suggest all Jews be forcibly removed from the region, and the Times editorialists would lament the unilateral Israeli assumption of docking rights for evacuation boats rather than the mass swimming exhibition some in the region would have prefered.

The editorial makes Elder of Ziyon wonder about the assumptions of the media

The pre-conceived notion that has attained Biblical status among the left is that Palestinian Arabs somehow "deserve" a state.

I am not quite sure what criteria are used to make this assumption. Why, for example, do the Kurds not "deserve" a state but Palestinian Arabs do? Exactly how does a people attain the status of "deserving" a state?

Simply Jews envies the editors at the Times and clarifies one of their assertions

Times>The key word here is unilaterally, because the Israelis are prepared to do this without any input from the Palestinians.
SJ>But we do get lots of input, dear Anonymous: more than 600 Qassams since the disengagement. How is that for a model of the future neighborhood relations?

In Context agrees with the Times that PM Olmert's plan is a disaster, but for vastly different reasons. And she provides an important historical observation.

The NY Times is aghast because Israel is actually proposing to leave established communities of "settlers" intact, one of them home to over 30,000 people. Israel is actually declining to uproot some 150,000 - 200,000 of its citizens who, in the years that the Arabs have been refusing to even acknowledge their right to live, have built roads and towns and schools and hospitals and synagogues, have planted trees and gardens, laid water and sewer pipes, run electric and phone lines, all those things that people who have an attachment to their land do and which have never been done in these places by anyone else other than Jews -- ever.

Daled Amos notices many oddities with the NY Times editorial such as

Finally, how odd that despite an entire editorial about creating a Palestinian state and its importance, it is not until the very last sentence that—except for a quote from Prime Minister Olmert—the New York Times once, and only once mentions the word ‘peace’.

Barry Rubin takes aim at the editorial's central conceit: that the Palestinians will be reduced to living in two separate sections of Manhattan

The idea of Palestine being reduced to "Battery Park City" is particularly odious. After all, the land being left for Palestine at present has 2.1 million people, 650 villages, and about 10 towns, along with a lot of empty space. Even if Israel were to retain the main settlement blocs, it would not have the slightest effect on the economic or political viability of a future Palestine. Only one such town, Ariel, is "deep" inside "Palestinian" territory, the others are all walking distance from the border.

My take? I guess what bugged me the most was this paragraph

To a significant degree, the Palestinians put themselves in this spot by electing Hamas to run their government, and the Bush administration is right to refuse to legitimize a government dedicated to the destruction of Israel. But Mr. Bush should not punish the Palestinian people by endorsing any unilateral proposal — doing that would punish them for exercising their democratic right to vote.

By acknowledging that the Palestinians voted to put a terrorist organization in power, the Times' editors undermine their argument that "Mr. Bush should not punish the Palestinian people." After all it was the Palestinian people who made that choice.

And to call it a democratic choice is absurd. According to previous treaties Hamas is a terrorist organization and should have been treated as such - its members jailed and barred from political activity. The victory of Hamas was a triumph of terror not of democracy.

My final point is similar to that of Elder of Ziyon. In March of last year the NY Times ran an editorial Kosovo's New Chance in which the editors of the Times asserted

An international review this summer is supposed to determine whether Kosovo has met the standards of governance and interethnic harmony that would justify granting it independence under a timetable set by the Security Council.

The Times believed that Kosovar Albanians needed to show that they were worthy of independence. (I doctored the editorial back then to make a similar point.) And despite 13 years of perfidy the Times simply believes that Palestinian independence should be a given and is a prerequisite for peace in the Middle East. Why doesn't it apply the same standard to the Palestinians that it does to the Kosovar Albanians?

UPDATE: Mediacrity takes issue the Times's comparison of the nascent Palestinian state and Manhattan.

Something missing from this neat little imagery, wouldn't you say? Such as the people on the East Side and Battery Park City vowing to obliterate the rest of Manhattan.

Technorati tags: Media Bias, New York Times, Israel.

A new terror strategy?

Douglas Farah recommends the article Architect of New War on the West about al Qaeda theorist Mustafa Setmariam Nasar. Nasar according to the article has developed a new terror strategy.

Counterterrorism officials and analysts see Nasar's theories in action in major terrorist attacks in Casablanca in 2003, Madrid in 2004 and London in 2005. In each case, the perpetrators organized themselves into local, self-sustaining cells that acted on their own but also likely accepted guidance from visiting emissaries of the global movement.

Nasar's masterwork, a 1,600-page volume titled "The Call for a Global Islamic Resistance," has been circulating on Web sites for 18 months. The treatise, written under the pen name Abu Musab al-Suri, draws heavily on lessons from past conflicts.

Nasar, 47, outlines a strategy for a truly global conflict on as many fronts as possible and in the form of resistance by small cells or individuals, rather than traditional guerrilla warfare. To avoid penetration and defeat by security services, he says, organizational links should be kept to an absolute minimum.

What I found interesting is that this strategy may not be all that new. According to an article on YNet (via IMRA via IRIS Blog) this sounds an awful lot like the strategy of one Yasser Arafat according to MK and former spook Rafael Eitan

“During one of the Palestinian conferences I was able to infiltrate, Yasser Arafat reiterated what he had said his entire life: ‘We will build a Palestinian system of many separate military units; only in this way will we be able to defeat the Jews and expel them to the sea’,” he said.

“Arafat realized his vision and built separate units that were added to the PLO’s military wings. This structure still exists in today’s Palestinian Authority; Hamas won’t change it, and neither will Fatah. I don’t see anyone who can change it.”

So here's one more instance that shows that Israel's fight against Islamic terrorism the same as the West's. And while he was referring to Hamas and not Fatat, Jonathan Rauch made this important point 3 years ago

There is at present no peace process in the Middle East, just a forlorn plan for one, fluttering in the wind. Hamas, more than any other single factor, is responsible for that. Like Al Qaeda, Hamas is a radical Islamist organization that swears it will not rest until it has brought Muslim territory under Islamic rule. For Al Qaeda, the territory at issue is the whole of the Arab world, plus the Spanish peninsula and other parts of Europe, plus ideally North America; for Hamas, the relevant territory is all of Palestine, meaning all of today's Israel plus the occupied territories. The theaters are different, but the battles—America's against Al Qaeda, Israel's against Hamas—are of a piece.

But it's not just Al Qaeda and Hamas. Fatah too is a terror group. And yet Fatah and Hamas are treated as noble if misunderstood. A recent Baltimore Sun editorial mischaracterized the nature of the Arab-Israeli conflict like this

But support for terrorism and the destruction of Israel undercuts the PA's legitimate right to vigorously protest the occupation.

Actually it is the claim of national rights that has put a patina of respectability on the terror of Hamas and Fatah.

In strategy, and tactics Al-Qaeda has learned from Palestinian terror. The failure to acknowledge this is what the late Michael Kelly referred to in When Innocents are the Enemy

If it is morally acceptable to murder, in the name of a necessary blow for freedom, a woman on a Tel Aviv street, or to blow up a disco full of teenagers, or to bomb a family restaurant -- then it must be morally acceptable to drive two jetliners into a place where 50,000 people work. In moral logic, what is the difference? If the murder of innocent people is for whatever reason excusable, it is excusable; if it is legitimate, it is legitimate. If acceptable on a small scale, so too on a grand.

Yes the failure to acknowledge the evil of Palestinian terror fully no doubt played a role in encouraging Bin Laden. And yet even the Bush administration - that rightfully went after Bin Laden and the Taliban - tolerated the strengthening of Hamas by forcing Israel to allow it to participate politically. And the Bush administration similarly applauded the withdrawal from Gaza that has allowed Al Qaeda to infiltrate and pose a threat, not just to Israel, but to Egypt too. If the West is to win the war on terror, it must treat all terrorism alike. And allow (or encourage, if necessary) its allies to do the same.

Other bloggers discussing Mustafa Setmariam Nasar: Dread Pundit Bluto, Lawhawk, IraqPundit.

Technorati tags: Terrorism, Al Qaeda, War on Terror.

What a bargain

I did an Ask.com query that included the word "Jews" and it generated the following ad:

- www.shop.com
Buy And Jew on SHOP.COM. Great Values & One-Stop Shopping.

Buy and Jew? Yikes.

Insta-pudding on Egypt, liberal hawks and the Eastern Province

via Glenn Reynolds.com MediaShift reports

One female blogger (pictured here), who is a friend of Alaa’s and blogs anonymously at Freedom for Egyptians , told me the reforms of the past year would be hard to turn back.

“On the ground in Egypt, change is on the march,” she told me. “An Egyptian told me a very nice expression when I was there last April: ‘The train of change has left the platform and there is no way that it will go back to where it was.’ There is a strong momentum for change that will happen eventually. There is a point when suffering reaches its highest point, when fear becomes no issue. I do expect lots of violence from the government because it has no will or wish for taking Egypt towards the path of democracy and freedom. It wants to maintain the status quo which means resisting the will of the Egyptian people by all means.”

What's interesting is that Jay Nordlinger expressed similar sentiments after meeting the Egyptian Prime Minister at a World Economic Forum meeting

And, it is true, the way he acts. Nazif is both the symbol and the driver of Egypt’s reform. Acknowledged as a major brain, he holds a Ph.D. in “computer vision” from McGill. He’s big on artificial intelligence—that sort of thing. And he is presiding over what everyone sees as Egypt’s economic opening: Tariffs, taxes, regulations, and other barriers are falling. Foreign investment is pouring in, and the economy is growing at 6 percent.

Nazif boasts of all this, and you can’t blame him. As we say in America—was it Casey, Yogi, or someone else?—“It’s not bragging if it’s true.”

The prime minister meets with some journalists over breakfast. He says that there is “no turning back” for Egypt—politically, economically, or socially. Reform has begun, and, though it will take time, it is unstoppable. “Some people are scared,” says Nazif. “I’m not.” And “we have time—we’re not in a hurry.” Egypt is an old and important country, and it will not be transformed over night; but it will be; and transformation is visible even now.

Nazif talks at length about last year’s presidential election, pronouncing it a success. It was a clean, First World operation, he says. And Egypt had never experienced anything like that before.

Yet the democrat Ayman Nour is in jail.

Both seem to be saying that despite the problems there is some real movement (both at the grass roots level and at the government level) toward more openness. I remain skeptical; just noting the similarities in these views.

Instapundit also has an item on hawkish Democrats (or is it liberal hawks?)

I don't think that there are enough liberal hawks left in the Democratic Party -- which is currently trying to purge Joe Lieberman -- to matter, but I'd love to be wrong.

Jackson Diehl thinks otherwise

Though you'd never know it from surfing the Internet, there exists in the Democratic Party a substantial body of politicians and policymakers who believe the U.S. mission in Iraq must be sustained until it succeeds; who want to intensify American attempts to spread democracy in the greater Middle East; and who think that the Army needs to be expanded to fight a long war against Islamic extremism.

I'm with Instapundit on this. Diehl may be able to rustle up liberal hawks, but they are mostly policy people not politicians. And it would be hard to imagine even those more moderate Democrats mentioned by Diehl associating with the likes of Kenneth Pollack before he wins the nomination.

Like a number of other bloggers, Instapundit linked to a Washington Post story about Saudi textbooks and concludes

The Saudis are not our friends. They are, in fact, at the root of global Islamist intolerance and violence to a degree at least as great as that of Iran. They must change peacefully, or be changed.

How might that change be effected, if it came to that? A few years ago, Max Singer suggested Free the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia

It is well within the power of the U.S. to make it possible for the EP [Eastern Province s.d.] to become independent from the Wahhabis, a new Muslim Republic of East Arabia. Especially if the independence of the people of the EP were gained in part by a promise to give half of the oil revenue to non-political Muslim charities throughout the world, instead of to the al Saud family, there would be no objection among Muslims around the world to ending the al Saud family’s obscene wealth and to relieve themselves of the Wahhabi preaching to their children that all other Muslims are infidels. The U.S. would neither seek nor gain control of oil policy or any oil profits. Its help to Muslims in the EP, like its help to Muslims in Bosnia and Kosovo, would be a result of U.S. resistance to oppression and pursuit of a safer world.

(Read the whole thing, of course.)

Other editions of Insta-pudding in Soccer Dad.

Technorati tags: Instapundit, Egypt, liberal hawks, Saudi Arabia.

Guest blogging

I'm guest blogging at Pillage Idiot.

More of the stories ...

I found this picture and the caption (from last week) interesting

Israeli explosives experts survey the scene after a rocket fired by Palestinian militants landed in Netiv Haasara

Yes, Netiv Haasara. It's important to remember what "moderate" Mohammed Dahlan said about Netiv Haasara

A Senior PA official, Mohmmad Dahlan, responsible for civilian affairs in the PA, says Israel must withdraw from the town of Netiv Ha’asara, a small residential community south of Ashkelon, in order to complete the planned withdrawal from the Gaza District.

The PA is demanding that Israel withdraw to the 1949 cease-fire lines and not the lines that existed just prior to the 1967 Six Day War.

And did you notice this:

Israeli medics help an assistant to Palestinian intelligence chief Tareq Abu Rajab at Erez crossing at the Gaza-Israel border May 20, 2006. Rajab was badly wounded on Saturday when an elevator he was taking at his headquarters in the Gaza Strip exploded in what his ally President Mahmoud Abbas called an assassination bid.

(Emphasis mine.)

So Palestinians try to kill Palestinians and it's the Israelis who come to the rescue. I suspect that "an assistant to Palestinian intelligence chief" is probably a terror facilitator.

And some good news Israelis Capture Top Palestinian Militant .

The West Bank commander of the Hamas military wing surrendered to Israeli troops Tuesday after they surrounded his hideout and threatened to demolish it with him inside.

Ibrahim Hamed emerged from the building before dawn and troops told him over a loudspeaker to strip to his underwear, witnesses said. Hamed complied, was cuffed and taken to a nearby building. Army officials said Hamed was armed and alone at the time of his capture.

The army said Hamed, 41, masterminded attacks that killed 78 Israelis and wounded hundreds.

Hamed has been on Israel's wanted list since 1998, frequently evading capture. Hamed, a university graduate and influential leader, became the West Bank's commander of Izzedine al Qassam, the Hamas military wing, in December 2003.

He didn't shoot back. And he's still alive. Those murderous Israelis.

UPDATE: Other bloggers on the story NoisyRoom, Gina Cobb and Environmental Republican via BuzzTracker.
Also Captain's Quarters, Little Green Footballs Meryl Yourish and Outside the Beltway.

Technorati tags: Palestinian Authority, Israel, Hamas.

Further fallout

I was going to write an angry post at the way a number of blogs have dealt with a recently revealed scandal. Hirhurim has said (h/t I'm Haaretz what I wanted to say (and provided some excellent background that I had no idea about too). In particular his final point bears repeating:

Finally, when a great Torah scholar is quoted on a blog or in a secular magazine as saying something that seems outrageous, assume that he is being misquoted. I believe you are halakhically obligated to do so.

In the comments Lamed Zayin showed how a responsible person should have viewed the quote in question.

And Rabbi Scheinberg (through a Rabbi Ginzberg) has issued an unequivocal rejection of the view attributed to him.

SerAndEz has an important followup to Hirhurim.

Reading harry potter is fun

Last week was Reading is Fun week so perhaps its appropriate that Saturday, when he was supposed to be going to sleep, our seven year old finished reading Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire. We knew that he was reaching the end of the book and figured that he finish it the next day. I know that the ending is quite exciting and I guess he just couldn't put it down.

He has loved the Harry Potter series. And to see him reading the books (and mostly) comprehending what he's reading is really thrilling.

I was discussing the Harry Potter series with some of my other children last night. My 12 year old made an interesting comment. He said that his little brother's favorite book (so far) is the Goblet of Fire and his least favorite is the Sorcerer's Stone. The 12 year old attributed that to his brother having read most of the former by himself whereas I read him the first book. He thought that it can't compare reading a book oneself than having it read. I think he's right.

Technorati tags: Harry Potter, Reading is Fun Week.

Don't leave home without it

Has this ever happened to you?

...and then I told the inspector, the cash that was in small unmarked bills was all gone from my hotel room. I was going to bring it back to Palestine to finance sui -- I mean my poor Palestinian brothers who live in wretched poverty caused by the Zionist settlers.

Whenever you need to smuggle a large sum of money to finance terror operations, don't use cash, use Palestinian Jihad traveler's cheques. Don't leave home without it.

Has this ever happened to you?

...and then the monitor asked me what it was. I said a belt. He said so what's that paper peaking out from that opening. I was going to bring it back to Palestine to finance a new lux-- I mean my poor Palestinian brothers who live in wretched poverty caused by the Zionist enemy.

Whenever you need to smuggle a large sum of money accross international borders to benefit yourself, don't use cash, use Palestinian Jihad traveler's cheques. Don't leave home without it.

UPDATE: Included in this week's Carnival of the Insanities

Technorati tags: Middle East, Hamas, satire.

Blogging advice for israelly cool!

Aussie Dave at Israelly Cool! is soliciting ...

suggestions that it is. Here's his problem:

For the past year or so, traffic to this blog has been relatively stable, the average daily unique visitors varying between 600-1000 a day.

Given my objectives with this blog, I want to go to the next level. That means breaking the 1000 daily average unique vistors barrier on a consistent basis.

This is where you come in. What kind of posts would you like to see more of? What do you think I can improve to increase the readership?

I e-mailed him a response that he viewed rather favorably and suggested that I make it public. So with his encouargement (and some editing) here goes:

1) Bring on co-bloggers. I'm getting the feeling more and more that bloggers reach a plateau. (Mine is 100-200 hits a day. So my giving you advice seems a little silly - something along the lines of my giving Warren Buffett investing advice.) One possibility is that because there are so many blogs, people find the few blogs they like and stick with them. So if you take on another blogger or two you make your blog more of a "one-stop." Meryl Yourish recently took on a couple of bloggers and she's in your range.
2) Claim that you're the long lost brother of Glenn Reynolds. Maybe the family connection will help.
3) Become obnoxious and let the insults flow.
4) SerAndEz most days does a link roundup. I know that this sort of thing is time consuming and is more of editorial related blogging than creative. (Please don't read this as an insult. It requires a specific skill; that's all I'm saying. I do linkfests too and they're not easy.) But bloggers are a vain sort of people and there's no greater compliment than when another links to us and show our appreciation by linking to the one who links to us. In addition he cultivates relationships with bloggers because he is a genuinely nice guy. In less than a year he's up to 250-350 hits a day. (SerAndEz comments below that figure has now increased to 450-500. All the more reason to follow his model.)
5) Participate in carnivals. Your stuff would be good for Carnival of the Satire, Carnival of the Insanities, Mediocre Media and, of course, Haveil Havalim. This should get you exposure that you might not otherwise get and maybe some of the folks who see you through these carnivals will stick.
6) Promise $10 a page view. I know that would bring me back at lest 10 times a day.

Technorati tags: Blogging, Blog traffic.

Sauce for Hamas

In More Bucks for Mr. Mubarak the editors of the Washington Post argue reasonably that the United States should be penalizing Egypt for its failure to reform and continued repression of its opposition.

As it turned out, Mr. Mubarak wasn't serious. In the past six months the 78-year-old president has shut down the political opening and moved to crush his democratic opposition. Mr. Nour is back in jail, sentenced to five years in prison on patently bogus charges; on Thursday a Mubarak-controlled court rejected his final appeal. This year's elections have been put off, and a draconian "emergency" law was renewed despite Mr. Mubarak's promise to lift it. Egyptians who protest are arrested or beaten.

A step back like this is not unusual for a crumbling regime or an aging dictator. What's truly remarkable is the way in which the Bush administration has abruptly dropped its own attempt to promote Egyptian liberalization. The day after riot police violently put down a pro-democracy demonstration in Cairo this month, Mr. Bush, Vice President Cheney, Ms. Rice and other senior officials all found time to huddle privately with Mr. Mubarak's son, Gamal. Most Egyptians believe the son is being groomed to succeed his father; many are convinced that strategy explains the jailing of Mr. Nour and the suppression of the opposition.

Five days later, State Department Assistant Secretary David Welch appeared before Congress to testify that none of Egypt's $1.8 billion in annual aid -- the third-largest foreign subsidy in the world -- should be withheld, because "it would be damaging to our national interests." Mr. Welch lauded Mr. Mubarak for trying to prevent a Palestinian civil war and opposing an Iranian nuclear weapon, though in both cases the Egyptian leader was acting in his own interest; Mr. Welch didn't mention Mr. Mubarak's antagonism toward Iraq's new Shiite government or his frontal attacks on U.S. regional democracy initiatives. Instead, he delivered a textbook restatement of the traditional Arabist strategy Mr. Bush once loudly repudiated, in which autocrats are funded and their domestic brutality tolerated for geopolitical convenience.

Very nice, but what happens if the Bush administration reverses itself and holds back funds leading to shortages of medical supplies and other necessities? Would the Post's editors then argue for resuming aid lest innocent Egyptians suffer?

I'd doubt that the editors would, yet that's exactly what they argued in a comparable case, just two days ago in A Palestinian lifeline

The outside nations, the chief source of support for the Palestinian Authority before Hamas won an election, have been demanding that the Hamas movement accept Israel, renounce terrorism and abide by existing Israeli-Palestinian accords before funding is restored. But Palestinian leaders have a long tradition of exploiting the suffering of their own people for political ends; Hamas has been content to foster a humanitarian crisis in the West Bank and Gaza Strip.

The result is that Israel and the Western donors are negotiating among themselves about how much funding should be restored to the Palestinians and in what form. They have little choice, since the collapse of the Palestinian Authority would do more damage to Israel, and lingering hopes for a Middle East peace, than it would to Hamas. But the governments need to be careful in their retrenchment: What's needed is an approach that spares average Palestinians from hunger and disease while continuing the political isolation of Hamas.

So Hamas has "foster[ed] a humanitarian crisis" but funding to the Palesitnian Authority should apparently be restored while somehow "continuing the political isolation of Hamas."

I don't see how it's possible to do both. But frankly the Post has offered a possible solution to the problem. Remember the Post advocated the most recent Palestinian Authority elections in the (vain) hope that the participation of the uncorrupted terrorist organization Hamas would force greater accountability upon the moderate corrupt Fatah party

Faced with the possibility of defeat by Hamas, Fatah has been forced to overhaul the aging and corrupt cadre left behind by Yasser Arafat and install young reformers at the top of its legislative list.

The Post has also reported in Out of Money but Not Resources that there's a private individual who's helping out his old village

At the end of last month, a crowd gathered in the town hall here to take part in an unusual act. About 75 people, all employees of the Palestinian Authority, were getting paid.

Like the rest of the 150,000 Palestinian civil servants, the teachers, bureaucrats and policemen here had not received a paycheck for nearly two months, the result of a freeze in international aid following Hamas's victory in January legislative elections.

But this village has a patron, a native son who prospered in the United Arab Emirates. Although he has returned to his birthplace only a handful of times since leaving with his family following the 1967 Middle East war, over the years Zuhair Jubran has remembered his village in trying times, few more so than now.

With the government unable to make payroll, Jubran decided he would. Each public employee, including teachers from neighboring villages who work in Beit Iksa's boys and girls schools, has started receiving a monthly salary of $325 from Jubran's private accounts.

So then private individuals could help out. And given their corruption over the years it may be safe to assume that the major players in Fatah still have fat bank accounts (made up, in no small part, of foreign aid). So instead of calling on the West to rescue the Palestinians who voted the unrepentant terrorist organization into power let those who should have helped use the funds they've received as they were meant to be used - to help their people not line their pockets or sit unused in bank accounts. (h/t Elder of Ziyon)

Additionally if Fatah releases these funds, Hamas would hardly be able to claim that they're standing up for the average Palestinians (the benign platform they campaigned on; there was also a malignant platform).

So instead of encouraging the West to rescue the Palestinians, why not demand that the Palestinians rescue the Palestinians.

Since the founding of the Palestinian Authority in 1993 it has been responsible for nothing. It has not stopped terror (and instead fomented it). It has not created an economy ( but relied on the unappreciated kindness of the international community). It has not done anything that constitutes a government in our times. Rather it has served as a trough for those Palestinians who are the most equal. Now the old major is dead, but nothing has changed.

In truth there's a difference between Egypt and the Palestinian Authority. Egypt though authoritarian and almost certainly corrupt does have institutions necessary for the functioning of a society; the PA does not. Without international funding Egypt would manage. The PA cannot unless Fatah coughs up its vast resources. No accountability has its price.

But if it's to the Washington Post, nothing should change. The world should continue to fund the Palestinian Authority even it keeps Hamas afloat. The political isolation comment is meaningless. The editors of the Post have to know that to support the PA is to support Hamas.

Technorati tags: Hamas, Egypt, foreign aid.

Department of silly pictures - other people's edition

A few weeks ago I introduced an occasional series, the Department of Silly Pictures. It seems that various news services have so oversaturated the Hamas controlled area of the Middle East with photographers that many of them take absolutely ridiculous pictures. I haven't had an edition of my own recently, but others are more than happy to pick up the slack.

One of the experts at this sort of thing is Israelly Cool! who has discovered that the PA recruits everyone for their police force. Young, old etc.

And I can't forget another old timer (who has his own series Palestinian Police Photo Phunnies) is Elder of Ziyon. Recently he's noted that Palestinian policeman tote something essential to police forces worldwide - RPG's. I'm sure the people in Gaza are reassured. And he also notices that Yankee fans are terrorists. (Well not really, but I hate the Yankees. Hopefully my sons won't see this post :-)

A newcomer this field is Greeting from French Hill who noticed that the PA police seemed to be choosing up teams.

And last but not least is AbbaGav who found a picture of a Palestinian police drag race. What? No pod racer?

Technorati tag: Palestinian police.

Haveil Havalim #70

Welcome back. Thanks for visiting Haveil Havalim #70 for your reading pleasure broken down into nice small (and not so small categories). If you submitted multiple nominations please understand that I am not inclined to include more than two items from any one blogger. I like to give exposure to as many blogs as possible; so please don't feel slighted or unloved. :-)

Life and politics in Israel

We'll start off with a post from Life in Israel as he tells about Variety at the Kotel as he recently greeted the Shabbos/Shabbat/Sabbath. It's a wonderful description with contrasting photographs (taken before the Sabbath!)

Ya'aqov Ben-Yehudah has the text of a special Al Hanissim commemorating Yom Yerushalayim, the day the Kotel (Western Wall) and Temple Mount was captured by Israel in the 1967 war.

Me-Ander answers a meme and recalls why she made Aliyah.

In Denmark many years ago the question was "To be or not to be?" But for Israel Matzav (in Israel) the question is whether Israel will be like Denmark or Sweden.

Israpundit describes how Israel is a security asset for the United States (h/t Hashmonean).

MidEast: On target considers the learning curve of new Defense Minister Amir Peretz.

Israel Matzav figuratively hacks the hacks who demand that Israel Surrender Now.

Dry Bones has Deja Vu - back to 1991.

Israel Perspectives is proud to have been cited in FrontPage Magazine. Yes it was a few months ago, but it still feels so good.

The War on Terror

Elder of Ziyon learns something about morality and the differing aims of Israel and its enemies from Israel's reaction to the Kfar Kassem massacre and corrects an Iranian press release in the process.

Fundamentally Freund emphasizes the Palestinian emphasis in Those who celebrate death.

Life of Rubin on the other hand has links to memories of Daniel Wultz.

Mensa Barbie links to an interview with Brigitte Gabrielle, a Lebanse Christian who owes her life to Israel to emphasize the dangers of a Palestinian state. (The video is 45 minutes long and may take a while to download.)

Israelly Cool! celebrates A good day for the good guys.

Shiloh Musings breathes a sigh of relief after a close call.

Deja Vu writes about how appeasing gangs has endangered Brazil and the lesson that holds for Israel.

Many in the media have been celebrating (yes, celebrating) the deployment of a new Hamas run "police" force. Mensa Barbie has it right. It is the great uniting of terror groups.

Jewish rights in Israel

There's an online database of documents presenting Israel's rights to Israel. (h/t Me-Ander)

Don's Mideast Musings refutes the notion of a Palestinian Holocaust.

The Hashmonean wonders why activities practiced everywhere else are condemned when Israel does them.

Palestinian money woes

Israel Matzav tells us that it's important to stop the Palestinian dependence on foreign aid.

AbbaGav makes a similar argument in Aksa Brigades Threatens US and Europe, No Sign Of Charles Bronson

Elder of Ziyon echoes the sentiment in his Canonical list of reasons idiots give to fund Palestinian Arabs

Meryl Yourish notes that for a people without money, those uncorruptable, upstanding leaders from Hamas seem to have no shortage of cash.

It's almost Supernatural reports that the Palestinians have destroyed even more greenhouses.

And as View from a Height notes, It's all Israel's fault. Isn't it always.

Mr. Olmert goes to Washington

Hedgehog Central reports on a recent appearance on the Hugh Hewitt show of Frank Gaffney who wants Israel to STOP THE INSANITY.

Jerusalem Watchman presents one Christian's view of the importance of the upcoming visit.

Shiloh-Musings muses about the differences between PM Olmert's planned "convergence" of communites like Shiloh and PM Sharon's disengagement plan.

I bugged Jewish Current Issues endlessly that I saw no difference between form PM Sharon's political plans and those of current PM Olmert. He didn't tell me to stop bugging him, but produced Convergence - What would sharon have done?

The Ignoble Experiment reports on a talk given by Herb Keinon.

Food for thought

Letter of thought decides to Wax Philosophical while in Vilna.

A simple Jew wonders about the missing pages.

In a post about the more mundane aspects of Life in Israel, he ponders the profundity of a lesson from my tile guy.

Remember the fish in Monsey who started talking in Yiddish a few years ago? According to Cross-Currents it has apparenly followed the path of Shabtai Tzvi and converted to Islam when it turned out that it was not a harbinger of the Moshiach (Messiah.)

Blog d'Ellisson is a rightfully proud father who graciously shares the Words of a wise daughter.

Elie's Expositions commemorates One year Gone.

Eurabia

The Ignoble experiment asks Guess who's coming to the World Cup?

Israel Matzav explains a schengen visa.

Secular Blasphemy wonders about the intelligence of Norway's pro-Hamas protesters.

IRIS documents the many attacks of Muslim gangs on women in Europe.

Greetings from French Hill presents an impressive list for a French "diplomat" to consider.

The Hashmonean is disappointed in Italy's new government.

Arts and Leisure

Kesher Talk announces Harry Potter and the Halakhic seal of Approval.

Life of Rubin presents My Guide to Jewish Children's Music & Video.

In Oz Yashir, Daled Amos offers Jewish Interpretations Of The Wizard Of Oz

Lag B'Omer
Bruce Springsteen (?) celebrates Lag B'Omer at Life in Isreal?

Points of Pinchas used to think that Lag B'Omer was about baseball. Now that he's an Oleh, he saw what it's really about; and has some wonderful pictures to prove it.

Biur Chametz discusses the origins of Lab B'Omer. Was it a mistake? My Obiter Dicta doesn't think so. Or at least that it doesn't matter.

Controversy and scandal

Greetings from French Hill issues A Red Alert for the Jewish Community

SerAndEz points to significant weaknesses in the New York Magazine article (aside from the central allegation.)

Elms in the Yard refused to move to the back of the bus.

My right word is losing count.

Academic Acrobats

Simply Jews intructs Prof Steven Rose with Some Facts.

My right word notes another silly academic.

Adloyada actually does know that another teachers union is Paving the way for a new boycott Israeli Universities; she also knows how to How to avoid the NATFHE boycott

Misc

Simply Jews smells that something is amiss with Daphna Baram's diatribe.

Second thoughts considers how inhumane Canada's immigration laws are.

Miriam's ideas has an idea that Jews are no longer interested in world domination. Carpools have really drained my interest in the subject.

The ignoble expermiment enjoys her graduation.

AJ History is also graduating and presents his final article for Commentator.

Like Jews everywhere Jack's Shack has a question: What do you call your blog?

The J-Blogosphere

The Ignoble Experiment writes of Operation J-Blogosphere (of which Haveil Havalim is a part.)

Crossing the Rubicon2 noted the fruits of the Ignoble Experiment's initiative: The Wikipedia article on the J-Blogosphere.

Another central point of the J-Blogosphere is a new blog called J-Blogosphere. (Credit to The Muqata and SerAndEz.)

SerAndEz and five other bloggers have started a new group blog: Just another Jewish Conspiracy.

To the many hosts and hostesses who have been so generous with their time, thank you for volunteering and having volunteered; you're the ones who do the work to keep this project going!

If there are any volunteers out there for future editions of Haveil Havalim please let me know. It's a lot of work, but 9 out of 10 hosts seem to enjoy it!

And there might some benefits in doing it. I saw this list at Jack's Shack. If you host, I'm not promising you riches or a beautiful/handsome movie star or Olam Haba, however you'll probably get a few extra hits!

WARNING: I still have several more posts to go. I hope to get through them this morning. So please check back. I also hope to have the schedule up for the next few weeks. I'm awaiting word about next week's hostess, but our e-mails seem to be missing each other.

WARNING II: I'm still not done yet. Check back this evening or tomorrow morning for the balance.

WARNING II: I'm finally done. Sorry I didn't do it all in a single posting. BTW, the Kosher Cooking Carnival #6 is up; check it out at Me-Ander.

UPCOMING Hosts/Hostesses:
#71 - May 28 - new hostess West Bank Mama - email her with your entries at westbankmama at fastmail dot fm
#72 - June 4 - the day after Shavous, Jack's Shack - email him at talktojacknow at sbcglobal dot net.

In addition to e-mail you may submit entries to Haveil Havalim using either Conservative Cat's handy dandy submission form or the submission form over at BlogCarnival.

Listed at the Truth Laid Bear Ubercarnival.

Technorati Tags: Blog carnivals, haveil havalim, Israel, Judaism.

Most recent editions of Haveil Havalim at Blog Carnival
#22 Mystical Paths
#21 Rabbinical Authority Consortium of HACKers
#20 Shiloh Musings
#19 Devarim
#18 Soccer Dad
#17 Mystical Paths
#16 Critical Mastiff
#15 Soccer Dad
#14 Multiple Mentality
#13 IsraPundit
#12 DovBear
#11 Kesher Talk
#10 Biur Chametz
#9 Soccer Dad
#8 It's Almost Supernatural
#7 Bloghead
#6 Willow Tree.
#5 Crossing the Rubicon2
#4 Dov Bear
#3 Biur Chametz

The bill is due

I don't think that I can cover the topic of stopping aid the Hamas run PA better than AbbaGav does.

However there is still the inclination of many in the media to place the burden of the blame for the Palestinian crisis on Israel.

An editorial in the Baltimore Sun A reprieve for Palestinians argues

The Bush administration resisted this temporary reprieve. But its European allies, Russia and the United Nations pressed Washington - and they were right. The World Bank this week revised its assessment of conditions in the West Bank and Gaza Strip since international donors refused aid to the bankrupt Palestinian Authority. Things have become so bad that it predicted the territories would be ungovernable by year's end. Such chaos might mean the end of the Hamas-led government; it also might lead to a civil war.

In Thinking outside the Iran Box, Jim Hoagland writes

The White House has flirted with a complete cutoff of Western economic help to the Gaza Strip and the West Bank in hopes of splitting Hamas or forcing Palestinians to oust the radicals who won January's legislative elections. U.S. agreement last week to work with the European Union, Russia and the United Nations to provide funding to relieve the looming Palestinian humanitarian crisis is a welcome sign that a scorched-earth policy -- a symmetrical response to Palestinian violence -- has not been firmly adopted at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave.

The White House went along with a European initiative on emergency aid after Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni telephoned Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice last Sunday and supported help for the Palestinians that did not go through Hamas. Defense Minister Amir Peretz went further Thursday, saying Israel should rethink harsh policies that contribute to the humanitarian crisis in the first place.

Barry Rubin however, thinks these concerns for a "humanitarian crisis" or "chaos" and "civil war" are misplaced.

There is also no reason to believe that paying the PA payroll will produce any development or broader benefits. It is one thing to subsidize another society if the recipients do something to warrant support but the PA got money only because it agreed to make peace and stop terrorism. Since the PA broke that agreement, the new regime openly rejected it, this leaves zero reason to give it aid.
As for fear that the PA is going to collapse, the PA has been collapsing since its inception. The reason the PA has been in such bad shape is because of the bureaucrats and gunmen--both Fatah and Hamas--who continue to breed anarchy because they put violence ahead of helping their own people. If this PA "collapses" how is that worse than what exists now?

If Palestinian nationalism had been about building a Palestinian state there would have been one by now. But Palestinian nationalism hasn't been as much about creating a state than destroying the one that.

And that is the problem. Instead of creating institutions of industry and governance, the PA mostly promoted its foreign funded "security" services. Now that the Palestinians need a responsible government more than ever there is none. Israel was told to stand by and allow Hamas to be elected, though it was a terror organization and its members should have been outlaws.

Well Hamas has moderated neither word nor deed. And Palestinian voters don't seem to regret the choice; just its cost.

Gershom Gorenberg may try to justify the election of Hamas claiming

Only a quirky electoral system gave Hamas a majority in the Palestinian legislature; in the popular vote, the hard-line movement didn't come close to winning. Polls among Palestinians continue to show strong majority support for a two-state solution and recognition of Israel. Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, of the more moderate Fatah, continues to call for talks with Israel.

The gap between Hamas's positions and public leanings is causing ferment in Palestinian politics.

But as Yisrael Ne'eman observed

The Hamas swept to parliamentary power in the Palestinian Authority four month ago in democratic elections. The Palestinian Islamists ran on a double platform advocating the replacement of the corrupt secular PLO-Fatah regime and the destruction of the State of Israel. “The People” voted and now “The People” must be responsible for the outcome. Over the past months weapons smuggling by land and sea continue and have even increased. Kassam, Grad and katuysha rockets are being fired from the Gaza Strip into Israel and on any given day there are approximately 80 terror warnings. Although the Hamas says it is holding to a “hudna” (Islamic cease-fire), by definition it means PM Ismail Haniya’s Islamic government is using the time out to strengthen itself to destroy the Jewish State.

In all fairness to the PLO-Fatah and other secular factions, they too polled tens of percentages and now sit in opposition to the Hamas. The PLO Covenant was never amended (Yes, this was supposed to have been done after the December 1998 Clinton visit but as we know, these things take time) and continues to call for Israel’s destruction. Here too, “The People” voted, only their votes went to the loyal opposition, whose leader incidentally is President Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) who personally may be in favor of a peace agreement and two-state solution, but whose organization officially still favors the liquidation Israel.

So 1) Palestinians knew that part of the Hamas platform remained implacably hostile to the existence of Israel and 2) Fatah hasn't exactly changed as it was supposed to.

And when Palestinians are interviewed by the news media they don't say "But Hamas didn't really win" they ask why the West questions their democratic choice.

The Palestinians knew what they were doing when they voted for Hamas. The consequences now are just coming due.

Technorati tags: Hamas, Israel, Terrorism.

In a jail of his own making

I heard about this on Dave Durian's morning show on WBAL. A thief ran afoul of a car's safety system.

Investigators claim that the unidentified man had forced an entry into one of the vans at an appliance repair company, trying to steal tools.

Things did not go as planned for him, however. He closed the side door of the van so he would not be seen.

What did him in was the child safety lock on the door. Once he was inside the vehicle he couldn’t get the door to open. There was also a heavy steel cage separating the front of the van from the back. So the man basically caught himself.

I was once car shopping and got into the back seat of a car and couldn't get because of the child safety lock. So I rolled down the window and opened the door from the outside.

Since this was a van, I'm guessing that there was no window to roll down. Or the thief was too surprised to try that.

Technorati tag: crime.

What's israel go to do with it?

Reuters has a picture of

Israeli explosives experts survey the scene after a rocket fired by Palestinian militants landed in Netiv Haasara

Despite Israel's withdrawal from Gaza, to the 1967 border, did not change the PA's designs on Netiv Haasara

On Thursday, a 22-year-old woman, sitting with her by-now-wounded boyfriend, was killed in old Israel by a Kassam rocket aimed from Gaza, about to be turned over to the Palestinian Authority (if it can hold it) and (if it can't), in the end, to Hamas, which won't even fake saying that it wants to end the bloodshed with the Jewish state. As The Jerusalem Post pointed out this morning, Netiv Ha'asara, the Negev village in which Dana Galkovitch was murdered in her stunning innocence, had just been certified by "moderate" P.A. minister Mohammad Dahlan to be part of the territory that would have to change hands even in a provisional settlement with Israel. The rub is that this new territorial claim extends to land allocated to Israel by the 1949 Rhodes Armistice Agreement, which is what constitutes the 1967 borders. But the 1967 ceasefire lines are supposed to be sacrosanct.

It's not just that Israel's withdrawal from Gaza has done nothing to satisfy Palestinian claims, it's that there seems to plenty of violence now, even having nothing to do with Israel.
There's violence in Lebanon

Lebanese officials said the clashes between Lebanon's army and guerrillas of the Fatah Uprising group erupted in Wadi al-Aswad, a mountainous area less than two miles from the Syrian border.

The military command said fighting erupted after an army patrol in the Aita al-Fakhar-Yanta area came under fire from armed Palestinians at a newly established position.

The patrol returned fire and was reinforced by additional troops, the military said.

There's violence in Gaza

In the latest spike in tensions, unidentified Palestinian gunmen shot dead Mohammed Tatar, a senior member of Hamas's military wing, as he drove his car in Gaza city, Palestinian medics and a security source said.

Speaking of Gaza, apparently there are two groups of Hamas related gunmen there.

The offiial ones.

Palestinian militants that are part of a new security force of the Hamas-led Palestinian government patrol the main square in Gaza City, Wednesday May 17, 2006. The Palestinians' defiant Hamas-led government sent a new militant force into the streets of Gaza on Wednesday, disregarding President Mahmoud Abbas' order banning the creation of the security body and raising the stakes in their deepening power struggle. (AP Photo/Adel Hana)

The unofficial

Palestinian militants from Hamas, that are not part of a new security force of the Hamas-led Palestinian government, display their weapons as they drive in the streets of Gaza City,Wednesday, May 17, 2006.

It looks like the unofficial ones are better armed. And they also get to wear really nice black face masks too.

Given the fact that there seems to be no shortage of firepower in Gaza why doesn't someone suggest the ultimate way to resolve the guns/butter conflict? The world's largest scale gun buyback program!

Technorati tags: Hamas, Gaza, Lebanon.

You need a license to drive but not to have children

You might remember that Britney Spears had some problems a few months ago

In February, authorities visited Spears' home after photos showed her driving in a car with the baby on her lap, rather than in a safety seat as required by law. Spears later apologized, saying she held the boy because of an encounter with paparazzi.

Well, whoops, she's apparently done it again.

Front-page photographs in Tuesday's New York Post and New York Daily News depict the 24-year-old ... pop star driving her convertible Mini Cooper with 8-month-old son Sean Preston in the back, sitting in a car seat facing forward.

The photos - in which Spears also sports hair curlers - have sparked debate over whether the singer violated the California vehicle code.

The code states that child safety-seats must be properly installed according to federal safety guidelines which recommend that babies up to a year old and up to 20 pounds ride in them in the back seat facing backward, Marshall said.

Apparently she has a license to drive because she didn't get stopped for that. And even if she hasn't yet learned how to properly secure her infant in the car. (And a Mini-Cooper yet.) But even if she can't parent, that hasn't stopped her. I left out a word from the above excerpt. Britney Spears is pregnant one more time. She didn't need a license for that.

Oh and for those of you who were wondering, Britney has ended her Kabbalah studies. Apparently she's now taken up Hinduism.

Glad to see that she's serious about religion, even if she can't decide which one.

UPDATE: Fire Ant Gazette disagrees. Two or three generations of people grew to adulthood never having been properly secured in an infant car seat. Shiloh Musings has a different defense of Britney in the comments below.

Technorati tags: Britney Spears, parenting, driving.

Eat lead

At Meryl Yourish, Laurence Simon notes a new way to complain about poor cellular service

They said around 20 gunmen entered the building saying their cellphone memory cards were not working. A short while later they began shooting, damaging over 10 computers but causing no casualties.

But shooting guns is not just a way to express outrage at bad cell service. (BTW I don't fire guns when Cingular drops me because 1) it's usually in a remote place where there's no one else around so there's no point and 2) I don't own a gun.)

It's also part of a somber reflection on those who have recently died

Palestinians shoot their guns in the air during the funeral of five militants,

I'm guessing that this isn't the best time to be firing weapons given the number of people covering their ears.

But if the Palestinians are so poor, how can they afford to waste so many bullets? It seems that they've chosen guns over butter. What's left? To eat lead (literally)?

UPDATE: Carnival of the Cordite #30 linked here.

Technorati tags: Palesitnian Authority, guns and butter, guns and butter, guns and butter, guns,

Kosher cooking

If you want to check out the next edition of the Kosher Cooking Carnival, you might first want to know a little about Kosher Cooking.

If that's of interest to you, you'll be happy to know that the Star-K now has a Virtual Kosher University where you can sign up and take courses about the principles of keeping Kosher.

I first thought that it as ironic that a company that makes its money by selling cheeseburgers would be underwriting a course on keeping Kosher:

Star-K and Torah.org wish to thank McDonald Corporation's Cy Pres Fund for the funding of this program.

Fortunately I looked up what the Cy Pres fund is and it is a settlement for deceptive business practices.

McDonald’s will pay the Settlement amount of $10 million. Those funds will be placed in a cy pres fund for distribution to charitable or other tax-exempt organizations to be mutually agreed upon by the parties on or before the effective date of the Settlement. The distribution will occur as follows: 60% to vegetarian organizations; 20% to Hindu or Sikh organizations or both; 10% to children’s nutrition or hunger relief organizations or both; and 10% to organizations promoting the understanding of Jewish law, standards and practices with respect to Kosher foods and dietary practices, and the observance of such standards by persons of the Jewish religion.

If you wish to enroll and take any of the courses (I haven't) go to www.kosherclasses.org.

UPDATE: Daled Amos has a follow up to the lawsuit and related observations in The Lawsuit Moslems did not file.

Technorati tags: Kosher, Kosher Cooking Carnival,Cy Pres Fund, McDonald/'s.

200+ and counting ...

There's an awful picture at Yahoo! News with the caption

The parents of American teenager Daniel Wultz, Tuly, right, Cheryl, center, and his sister Amanda, left, touch his coffin, covered in a Jewish prayer shawl, a folded American flag given to the family by the U.S. Ambassador in Israel and an Israeli flag, during a memorial service at a Jerusalem synagogue before transferring his body to the U.S. for burial, Monday, May 15, 2006. Wultz, 16, died Sunday of wounds sustained in an April 17 Palestinian suicide bombing at a Tel Aviv restaurant. His death brought the toll of those killed in the attack to 11.(AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

According to the American embassy more than 200 American citizens have been killed *or wounded* (thanks for the correction Elder of Ziyon) by Palestinian terrorism since 1992.

Unfortunately, President Bush seems just as concerned about getting to the bottom of the outrages as his predecessor did.

President Clinton promised Joyce Boim that the apprehension of Mohammed Deif - who was responsible for her son David's murder - was a priority of his administration. But Clinton never acted. On Deif or any other Palestinian murderer of Americans.

The American government was muted in response to the appointment of Jamal Abu Samadana as head of the PA's police force in Gaza, even though Samadana has been implicated in the bombing of a convoy that killed 3 American citizens.

"If Hamas wants to be taken seriously, it must first renounce terrorism... and looking at the people they are putting in these positions is discouraging," said Stewart Tuttle, the US Embassy spokesman in Tel Aviv.

Still if the government won't take action againt the PA and its agents, at least private citizens have been making an effort through the courts.

Unfortunately some legal shenanigans in Israel may deprive families of even that small measure of justice.

Technorati tags: Israel, Terrorism.

New feature

I'm going to call this feature Insta-pudding. Basically it will be occasional commentary on Instapundit.

Instapundit is almost always fascinating. He also covers a wide range of topics. Often they inspire me to think of something related. However given the amount of e-mail he certainly gets, he rarely acknowledges what I send him. So if I have something to say, I don't have to say it to him. Do I?

Yesterday he linked to an item about Egypt focusing on the plight of Egyptian blogger Alaa. But did he know that there a number of Israeli bloggers demanding Alaa's release?

Here are a couple: AbbaGav and the Muqata.

UPDATE: Whoops, and now I see there's a comprehensive list of Israeli blogs for Alaa.

Technorati tag: googlebombingforalaa.

Chocolate chips and mondays

Fire Ant Gazette didn't have a good Monday.

He must not have known that it was chocolate chip day yesterday.

It was decidedly not a good day for George Lenchner.

But it was a great day for Not Quite Perfect. Happy Blogiversary.

Technorati tags: Monday, chocolate chips.

The marketing of nakba

Every year May 14 or May 15 comes and goes. But not without comment. There is always a news story (or are news stories) about the Naqba. For example the Associated Press reported:

Palestinian women, some holding Palestinian flags, attend a Hamas rally to mark the 58th anniversary of 'the Naqba,' or 'catastrophe', the term Palestinians use to describe Israel's creation on May 15, 1948, in the Rafah refugee camp Monday May 15, 2006. Some 700,000 Palestinians fled or were driven from their homes during the war that followed the declaration of the Jewish state.

Then there's this from Reuters

A Palestinian boy wears a Hamas head band during the movement's rally ahead of the 58th anniversary of the Nakba (Day of catastrophe) at Rafah refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip May 15, 2006. Palestinians mark the Nakba as a day of mourning for the establishment of Israel in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war which led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians. The head band reads: 'There is only one God.'

Given the religious component of Palestinian nationalism, why is the date used for the Naqba the Julian?

It's because the West will react to a Julian anniversary a lot more readily than it will to an Islamic one. If every year on the 6th of Rajab we'd be almost celebrating the 60th which would be about 3 months from now. By using the Julian date, the Palestinians keep Nakba in the same season (within a week or two) of Israel's independence day.

But that's not the only item that's being marketed for Western consumption. There is also the myth of the keys

A Palestinian man displays a key that he says is from his home as he marks Nakba in the West Bank refugee camp of El Fawwar near Hebron May 15, 2006. Palestinians mark the Nakba as a day of mourning for the establishment of Israel in the 1948 Arab-Israeli war which led to the displacement of hundreds of thousands of Palestinians. REUTERS/Nayef Hashlamoun

A staple of Palestinian profiles is the mention of the key to the house in Jaffa that the refugee left behing. The problem is that the keys, as LGF notes look awfully similar. But whether or not these keys really worked, they are a symbol that Western media mythmakers are all too willing to promote.

Elder of Ziyon writes about toasting Nakba with a fine whine.

Israel Matzav reveals the Nakba code.

Clarity and Resolve observes that some want to celebrate Nakba by attacking the U.S.

AbbaGav critiques other Naqba photographs here and here.

And he speaks for me when he says

Shame on AP for not monitoring what is published in its name. The Palestinians can handle their own Press Office; they really don't need another.

What applies to AP applies to all too many news agencies nowadays.

Efraim Karsh answers the essential question "Were the Palestinians expelled?"

UPDATE: And what would a marketing campaign be without some really nice posters? Greetings from French Hill found one, and its covered with .... keys. And it demands ... return. He concludes

it gives a true account what the Palestinians really want, or at least what they don't want, no compromise - no Israel and of course no Jews living in their land.

AFP has a picture that it describes

A Palestinian artist paints a mural marking the 58th anniversary of the Naqba, "Day of catastrophe", when Palestinians lost their homes and land to the creation of the State of Israel

And it shows a red key integrated into the body of a highly stylized dove. Presumably it means that peace will come when the owners of the deserted houses get to return. But will that be before or after all the Jews are driven from the land?

UPDATE: Featured in Carnival of the Insanities #21.

Technorati tags: Nakba, Israel.

Reform - washington post style

The Washington Post's profile of Prince Talal of Saudi Arabia is A Rebel Prince's Vision for Reform.

Reform? And what about this paragraph:

Against his better judgment, Talal and four brothers sought help in 1962 from Nasser, who had electrified a generation with promises of Arab unity, the liberation of Palestine and denunciations of regimes he deemed regressive, Saudi Arabia among them. Unlike most of the Saudi royal family, Talal was enamored with the Egyptian president -- he feels the same today, he said -- but he feared being exploited.

Aside from that qualification "against his better judgment" what do you notice about the paragraph? One of Nasser's goals was "liberation of Palestine." In 1962.

There's no indication that Prince Talal's vision of Palestine has changed in 44 years. But because he wants women to get college degrees, he's a reformer.

Technorati tags: Israel, Saudi Arabia, Prince Talal.

Unpublished letter to the editor

Last week the Baltimore Sun published an article by Norman Solomon titled "Opening the Debate." (Also available here. The gist of the article is that the Walt/Mearsheimer paper on the Israel Lobby has occasioned a serious look at the outsized influence Israel has over American policy. And since such serious academics were involved the usual way of shutting debate - calling such critics antisemites - won't work. At the encouragement of others, I wrote a letter to the editor (and am working on a post). Since I haven't heard from the Sun, I can assume that they won't be using my letter, so here it is.

Norman Solomon opens "Opening the Debate on Israel" with a bit of dishonesty - he ignored the most prominent reaction to Walt/Mearsheimer paper. White supremacist David Duke very publicly endorsed the paper, "The Lobby." The New York Sun might have been the only paper to report of Duke's praise for "The Lobby" in its news pages.

And it's little wonder that "The Lobby" appealed to the likes of David Duke. The central thesis of the paper is that a small group of Jews influences American foreign policy favorably towards Israel even though support of Israel is detrimental to the interests of the United States. This thesis strongly echoes the Protocols of the Elders of Ziyon, a forgery of a century ago that pretended that a small cabal of Jews controlled the world.

And if there were any doubts about the motives of Professors Walt and Mearsheimer they were put to rest when the pair submitted to an interview with Robert Fisk of the leftist British newspaper the Independent. The graphic on the cover of the section in which the interview appeared showed an American flag with six pointed Stars of David replacing the standard five pointed stars and the title read "United States of Israel."

Neither professor disowned the interview or the offensive material related to it. One can only assume that they approve of the ugly sentiments expressed by the Independent.

(A staple of white supremacist hate groups is the terms ZOG - Zionist occupied government. United States of Israel is only a slightly more polite way of expressing the same sentiment.)

Perhaps the charge of antisemitism is not always fair when levelled at critics of Israel. But Walt and Mearsheimer have no problem associating with those whose views clearly cross the boundary of legitimate criticism. Unfortunately Norman Solomon wasn't honest enough to allow his audience to see the whole picture and judge for itself.

I'm sure it was too long for the Sun to publish.

UPDATE: I followed the advice of Israel Matzav and checked. Indeed the Sun has published a number of letters on the subject. Notice that two of the letters criticizing Solomon are organizational people. And that two of the supporters of Solomon have Jewish/Israeli sounding names.

Technorati tags: Walt and Mearsheimer, Israel.

Related articles about Israel in Soccer Dad.
Related articles about Walt and Mearsheimer in Soccer Dad.

More information on the park height area outrage

There's more information on thug who attacked a woman in the Orthodox Jewish area of Baltimore here (including a picture.)
The description with the picture says the the young man who was about 5' 10" and 170 pounds was well dressed and spoke softly.

He was not the sort of person that someone would instinctively avoid.

The poster (which is hanging in the patrol room at the Aguda) says that anyone with information about this man should call Det Caprice Smith at 410-396-2076.

UPDATE: I changed the link to a news item that included a sketch of the suspect. The original site I linked to has a lot of information that, to put it charitably, is baseless.

Technorati tags: crime, Baltimore.

Bone marrow drive in baltimore

Next Sunday ( 5/21/06 ) there is bone marrow drive scheduled

from 1 to 5 p.m. at Beth El Congregation, 8101 Park Heights Ave. The test consists of a cotton swab inside the cheek.

It is for Dr. Lauri Reamer who is suffering from acute lymphocytic leukemia. If you'd like to contribute toward the costs involved send donations to:

Beth Jacob Discretionary Fund/Lauri Reamer, Care of: Kirk, 7 Slade Ave. #622, Baltimore, Md. 21208.

And for more information

visit www.supportlauri.com or e-mail supportlauri@abis.com

Once you've been screened your type information is stored in a national registry. Even if you are not a match for Dr. Reamer, there's a chance you might be a match for someone else. (A year after I was tested, I was called in for a second test. Nothing has advanced since then though.)

Numbers are important as the chance for a match is 1 in 20000. So if you haven't yet been screened and you live in the Baltimore area, consider going to the screening next Sunday.

Technorati tags: bone marrow, HLA Registry, leukemia.

Haveil Havalim #69

Well here's Haveil Havalim #69 for your reading pleasure broken down into nice small (and not so small categories). If you submitted multiple nominations please understand that I am not inclined to include more than two items from any one blogger. I like to give exposure to as many blogs as possible; so please don't feel slighted or unloved. :-)

Learning curve

With the recent elections in Israel there's a need for a lot of learning ...
Woland's observes that the political establishment ought to learn not to take the Russians for granted.

Greetings from French Hill is learning once again how expensive it is to create a government in Israel in Vote early and vote often.

And AbbaGav has generously prepared a primer for the member of the cabinet least qualified for his job. Israelis can collectively breathe easier already.

In disengaging from Judea and Samaria, Ocean Guy wonders if PM Olmert has learned anything.

The Path to the Knesset is learning about the road to opposition.

Life of Rubin learns about faith from "Lost." (Warning: spoilers at end of post after a nice cushion.)

No (Ha)mas

The Counterterrorism Blog considers aiding the Palestinians without helping Hamas.

Elder of Ziyon wonders why there's so much concern for the well-being of the Palestinians, they voted for Hamas knowing its pedigree, in "Money for Nothing" (and the virgins for free.)

Simply Jews tells us Marwan Barghouti's peace offer - to Hamas.

Captain's Quarters laments that the West may well be feeding Palestinian intransigience.

Deja Vu worries about the lesson the West may be teaching Iran.

The Hashmonean wonders if Israel's actions are encouraging Iran.

Little Green Footballs has a series of pictures of the strange Palestinian police training, followed by a familiar salute.

IRIS presents a map that seems disturbingly prescient.

Jewish Current Issues wonders why American Jews are hesitant to fight against Hamas. And punctuates it with a classic, mordant joke.

Boker Tov Boulder tracks how Hamas comes closer to ?

In a similar vein Meryl Yourish has a Hamas non-moderation watch.

Israel Matzav notes that Hamas is still trying to carry out attacks.

And Backspin counts two funny ways to keep a truce. Here's 1 and 2.

View from a Height observes that the Palestinian crisis brought about by the Palesitnians' election of a Hamas government is Israel's fault.

Cox and Forkum illustrate the problem in No Consequences.

Orthodoxy and Israel

Daled Amos wonders if there is a potential rift forming between Orthodox Jewry and Israel.

Don's Mideast Musings disputes Caroline Glick's assertions about the population of national religious soldiers in the IDF.

My Obiter Dicta has links to a number of responses to recent comments by A. B. Yehoshua.

AddeRabbi has more on the Rabbanut/RCA conversion controversy.

Honesty is such a lonely word

Israel Perspectives finds himself cynical, but then he finds some honest in Lost and Found in the Holy Land.

Unfortunately Presence encountered someone who we had to beware of.

Life in Israel considers how Shas and Labor will justify the conflict between their constituents and the government they joined.

Jewish Observance

Treppenwitz has learned about the true ability of children.

Jameel is happy that El Al provides "premium flights."

Life in Israel ponders Going to the movies or er Learning Daf Yomi.

A Simple Jew has an interview with Yoni Lipshutz of Simply Tzfat.

Biur Chametz ponders the problem of celebrating a national-religious Yom Ha'atzmaut.

Letters of thought thinks about what it means to be a Ba'al Teshuva (returnee to religion.)

R' Chaim Haqoton ponders the holy properties of honey.

SerAndEz disapproves of the Monsey internet ban.

And PsychoToddler gets lots of visits because of his Sabbath mode post, so he has Sabbath mode revisited.

Miscellany

Bob Eubanks? Jihadists? It could only the Newlywed Game at AbbaGav.

Erica's blog welcomes back Kotter.

Pillage Idiot presents the star spangled banner in Yiddish. I wonder what the "fun rockets" are? My Right Word has all four stanzas.

The Atlantic Review recalls examples of poor education, including French Foreign Minister Douste-Blazy's statement of ignorance while visiting Yad Vashem.

The Ignoble Experiment has a marketing idea for the J-blogosphere. One word "Wikipedia."

Unplugged Mike has an off key music review.

My Right Word and Life of Rubin have been tracking the crimes that have been plaguing various Jewish communities in America. Nor has Baltimore been spared.

Israel, Islam and the World

Michael Totten visits Tel Aviv (and Yerushalayim).

Faith in Nathan is contemplating his move from Jerusalem to Tel Aviv. Shiloh Musings wishes that his view of Jerusalem was not so negative.

Bookworm Room sees Reasons for optimism in one Arab country.

The Ignoble Experiment discusses some problems in integrating the Mizrachi population into Israeli society.

IRIS reports that Egypt claims to have killed a terrorist group operating in the Sinai.

OrthoMom reports that the nations baggage handlers may have more than a little baggage of their own!

A month ago it was reported that the Nazi's had prepared to bring the Holocaust to pre-State Palestine (h/t Mensa Barbie) now My Right Word notes a report that has more details of this plan in the Nazi-Arab Palestinain Axis.

Bookworm Room refers to a colleague at the American Thinker to present The things we don’t know about the conflict in the Middle East.

Miriam's ideas compares Friday service in other religions (including in her synagogue) to Friday services in a Mosque.

Is there a similarity to anything we've seen before My Right Word wonders.

Simply Jews critiques Mulham Assir.

Mid-East on Target writes about the Deadly Antisemitism - the Pattern.

The Hashmonean writes about how Muslim intellectuals shamelessly promote martyrdom on TV.

Israel Matzav reports on the latest academic boycott of Israel.

Life in Israel relates how he came to make Aliyah.

Jewish Blogmeister notes that Shimon Peres can threaten also.

Rishon Rishon (who's been pretty quiet lately) has popped up to broadcast the words of Ayaan Hirsi Ali when she accepted the Moral Courage Award from the American Jewish Committee.

New Blogs

Hamas ceasefire? Not according to the Ongoing War at Keren Malki.

Longtime commenter and e-mailer, Susan from Asheville e-mailed how a Shul got sued by the Hard Rock Cafe AND she's started the OyVay Blog.

Last night I overheard someone at Goldberg's Bagels discussing his blog. Curious I asked the name of his blog. Mazel123.

Remembering

Me-Ander got her start blogging, remembering the deaths of neighbors in terror attacks. She also remembers Shmuel Hofbauer who was among the founders of Shiloh.

IMRA could possibly be considered the very first Israel blog. One of its founders, Dr. Joseph Lerner passed away. When an ombudsman at the Washington Post retired one of his memories was of Dr. Lerner consistently calling in to complain about coverage of Israel. His efforts to defend Israel did not stop when he made Aliyah and, with his son Aaron, founded IMRA - one of the pioneers of pro-Israel activism on the internet. (h/t Shiloh Musings.)

West Bank Mama remembers the unspeakable cruelty that took David Hatuel's family from him in Remembrance Day for Little Girls

At Elie's Expositions, Debbie and Elie remember Aaron and tell us how they (and we) will remember him. And then Elie consider's Movin' On.

SerAndEz remembers his Uncle Marvin.

Scroll to the end of Smatherings at Crossing the Rubicon2 to read the shocking story of Nazi records that have opened.

Presence visits his family plot and recalls his great grandparents.

And unfortunately Jack's Shack has bad news about Daniel Wultz.

To the many hosts and hostesses who have been so generous with their time, thank you for volunteering and having volunteered; you're the ones who do the work to keep this project going!

As of now I'm assuming that I'm hosting next week. If there are any volunteers out there for future editions of Haveil Havalim please let me know. It's a lot of work, but 9 out of 10 hosts seem to enjoy it!

In addition to e-mail you may submit entries to Haveil Havalim using either Conservative Cat's handy dandy submission form or the submission form over at BlogCarnival.
Listed at the Truth Laid Bare Ubercarnival.
Technorati Tags: Blog carnivals, haveil havalim, Israel, Judaism.

Most recent editions of Haveil Havalim at Blog Carnival
#22 Mystical Paths
#21 Rabbinical Authority Consortium of HACKers
#20 Shiloh Musings
#19 Devarim
#18 Soccer Dad
#17 Mystical Paths
#16 Critical Mastiff
#15 Soccer Dad
#14 Multiple Mentality
#13 IsraPundit
#12 DovBear
#11 Kesher Talk
#10 Biur Chametz
#9 Soccer Dad
#8 It's Almost Supernatural
#7 Bloghead
#6 Willow Tree.
#5 Crossing the Rubicon2
#4 Dov Bear
#3 Biur Chametz

A m rosenthal

A M Rosenthal died this week. He had been editor of the New York Times. Later he was a columnist for the Times and later, the Daily News. I'll probably write more about him later, but I enjoyed his columns. They were often intemperate, but he highlighted outrages that the rest of the Times ignored; especially when it involved Jews.

The one column my wife and I recall was from July 23, 1993. It was called "What the Hasidim Know" and he issued this warning to Jews who weren't concerned enough about the Crown Heights riots of two years earlier

I do not understand why some Jews do not understand what is in the hearts of the Hasidim, or are silent. They would not tolerate, for a moment, police or mayoral failure against riots in their own neighborhoods. 911 would damn well work. There would be no sympathetic clucks for "root cause" rationalizations.

Are the Hasidim a little too Jewish for them? Maybe they think only a certain kind of Jew gets beaten up. Sweethearts, by you, you are Park Avenue, by your wife you are Park Avenue, but by an anti-Semite you are a Hasid.

His later years were filled with concern for Jews and Israel and I appreciated him for that.

UPDATE: In his tribute to Rosenthal, "Shoe Leather and Tears" (May 12, 2006) Thomas Friedman wrote

Many readers became aware of Abe only after he became a columnist. He was very conservative and supportive of right-wing parties in Israel. But let me tell you this: When he was editor, I reported for him from Israel and the Arab world for many years. I am sure I wrote things that gave him heartburn. But in all those years he never once complained about anything I wrote. I never knew his politics until he became a columnist. As editor, he was obsessed with keeping The Times ''straight,'' as he used to say, with no reporters' or editors' thumbs ever on the scale.

Actually, I believe that Rosenthal changed after he stepped down as editor. But it's an important point given that the NY Times has been accused by many, including Profs. Walt and Mearsheimer that the Times was pro-Israel because its editors were. (Yes, the editor in question was Max Frankel, Rosenthal's successor, but given Rosenthal's reputation this still stands as a rebuttal to the charge.)

Ironically, Rosenthal in a profile in 1992 ( The Late Blooming Of A.M. Rosenthal, Arthur J. Magida, Baltimore Jewish Times, Feb 21, 1992) made a similar comment about Friedman

"Then Tom wrote his book [From Beirut to Jerusalem]. In it, he said some things that surprised a few people, including me. He had deeper reservations and opinions about what the Israeli government had been doing than I thought. That makes me admire him even more for the fact that I didn't know that. And for the fact he did not travel these through the news columns of the New York Times."

I think that Rosenthal was being too generous to Friedman. His "deep reservations" very much colored his reporting.

What were AM Rosenthal's views about the Middle East when he edited the Times? I suppose that editorial can tell us part of the story.

For one there was the Fallout from Baghdad ( June 14, 1981 ) which lamented

It is no favor to Israel to keep admiring a military boldness that threatens to become a substitute for intrepid diplomacy. Its survival depends on more than valor and sacrifice. It depends on a tenable American position in the region and on validation of Mr. [Sadat]'s diplomacy, which the Israelis once held to be as ''irrational'' as their other neighbors'. Israel today is not nearly so desperate as Prime Minister Begin contends. A truly bold Israel would use this time of military superiority not to flaunt its power but to run more risks for accommodation, encouraging especially Palestinians to trade steps toward peace for hunks of territory.

Pretty typical of the NY Times.

However in his own column, Shall we wait and see (Feb 27, 1996) , Rosenthal wrote:

Menachem Begin faced the question in 1981 and Bill Clinton faces it now, one of the most difficult questions of national leadership.

On June 7, 1981, Israeli F-16 pilots bombed and smashed Saddam Hussein's first nuclear reactor, so badly that it had to be abandoned.

Denunciations rolled in from the Arab world and Europe, particularly from France, which had built the reactor for the Iraqis. From the U.S. too came outraged criticism. The New York Times's editorial voice was among the critics, calling the "sneak attack" an "act of inexcusable and short-sighted aggression."

The Israeli raid set back Saddam's nuclear-weapons plans at least 10 years. Saddam's lost nuclear decade allowed the U.S. -- and the Arabs and the French too -- to make the decision to fight him when he invaded Kuwait and threatened Saudi Arabia's oil.

Mr. Begin's objective was hardly to protect Iraq's Arab neighbors or their oil. He just wanted to make sure that the Israeli people were protected from the most dangerous of human beings -- a military dictator endowed with a record of instability, very bad judgment and a weapon of unspeakable horror. Israel had its own nuclear weapons. But Mr. Begin did not want to find out if Saddam Hussein was mad enough to use his first.

The Baltimore Jewish Times profile explains the discrepancy:

During his 17 years as the Times' top editorial executive, Mr. Rosenthal occasionally disagreed with the paper's editorials regarding the Middle East. He strenuously disagreed, for instance, with the paper's 1981 condemnation of Israel's attack on the Iraqi nuclear reactor. But because of the Times' "church/state" policy that distinguished between editors who established its editorial policies and those, such as Abe Rosenthal, responsible for its news columns, Mr. Rosenthal did not complain to editorial writers.

I guess, then, that I was wrong to credit Rosenthal for The Jordan Door Slams Shut (April 17, 1983) which argued

The P.L.O. will prosper as a ''liberation'' fraternity but produce only ineffectual terror. And the Palestinian people will nurse a powerful grievance against them all.

Why are monarchs as shrewd as King Hussein and wealthy as King Fahd so beholden to the weak exile army of the P.L.O.? The unavoidable answer is that they choose to be beholden, for reasons of state. And as Daniel Pipes argues in the current Commentary, the reason must be that the legitimacy of Arab governments, particularly the most conservative, greatly depends on their appearing loyal to the one remaining pan-Arab cause.

I still can't imagine that any editor at the Times other than Rosenthal (or maybe Frankel) would read Commentary, much less recommend it. Still the editorial was useful in at least acknowledging that the PLO was less a revolutionary movement than a tool of the Arabs.

But regardless of his role as editor, A. M. Rosenthal deserves credit for the strong stands he took on behalf of Jews and Israel as columnist.

As Thomas Friedman concludes (for vastly different reasons that I do)

May your memory be a blessing.

Others who commented on A. M. Rosenthal: Peoria Pundit and New Harper's Mews.

UPDATE: Thanks to Blog D'Ellison for his kind word and including this in Carnival of the Vanities #192.

Technorati tags: A. M. Rosenthal, Israel, Judaism, New York Times.

Raid on the sun redux

I am currently finishing a borrowed copy of Raid on the Sun by Rodger Claire.

The book is about the Israeli raid on the Osirak reactor in Iraq in 1981. (I was studying in Yeshiva in Israel that year and when we were told that Israel had bombed Iraq it didn't compute with me. About that time Israel was regularly running raids into Lebanon so I was really surprised when I heard Iraq.)

It is well written and easy to read. It is marred by a number of annoying mistakes and errors that should have been edited out. (Claire seems to think that tachmoshet - ammunition, is 2 words. He makes the mistake twice!)

Though I haven't yet finished the book certain aspects of the raid are clear and have implications for any hypothetical raid into Iran. I don't mean this to be an exhaustive list, these are just the issues that occur to me.

1) It's no longer secret. When Israel attacked Osirak, what they were doing was unheard of. It's been heard of now. If Jordan or Saudi Arabia detects unidentified aircraft they will scramble their own defenses. Even if their aircraft don't engage the Israelis, the secret would be out.

2) The distance. Fighter pilots usually go on missions for no more than an hour. And hour when the pilot has to concentrate completely on his plane, not to mention be aware of any possible attackers. The round trip to Iraq was eight hours. Iran is further away.

3) Practice. I would assume that spy satellite capabilities are more advanced than they were 25 years ago. How will Israel train the pilots without the extended training flights being detected.

4) Detection. The eight planes flew over an Arab leader. If they flew over one today I don't think he'd have any uncertainty as to the source of the planes. (I know this is very close to 1.)

5) Israel allowed Claire access to all the team members. (The only one he didn't interview was Ilam Ramon who was killed in the Columbia accident before they could meet.) If Israel had any intention of pulling something like this off again would it have released all these details?

6) Political Will. Begin was absolutely convinced that the attack was justified regardless of consequences. Are there enough people currently in the government who are convinced of the need to attack Iran and would approve a plan this risky?

Reading the book it's very clear that the destruction of the reactor was nothing less than a miracle. The number things that could go wrong but didn't is amazing. And then a few things did go wrong but ended up not affecting the mission.

It may be possible that one of the scenarios laid out by Daled Amos will come to pass. But if it does something else will have to happen.

I think that there's another factor that will be involved if Israel plays any role in the destruction of Iran's nuclear facilities: Israel will not be doing it alone. There will have to be another country (or, more correctly, a least one other country) involved in the effort.

A final footnote. Most everyone knows that Ilan Ramon, Israel's first astronaut was one of the pilots involved. Two other pilots have also been in the news lately.

Ifrach Spector, Israel's greatest combat pilot became newsworthy a few years ago when he started a protest against Israel's tactics against terror.

Gen Amos Yadlin, another of the pilots, is now head of Israel's military intelltigence. He also is the author of Ethical dilemmas in fighting terrorism.

Technorati tags: Iran, Iraq, Osirak reactor, Israel.

The proof is in the muddling

It looks like I didn't read a post by Pillage Idiot closely enough, however, when I went back I saw this:

It reminds me of when I studied math in college. The proofs would often leave out something important, and the texts would say that proving what was left out was an exercise for the reader. Thanks a bunch!

It reminds me of this handy list of "proofs" that I saw when I was in graduate school. It also struck me as the perfect list for the internet. I was right. For example

Proof by intimidation:
"Trivial."

Or as I heard all too often, "Think about it."

Actually, I found a second list too. Though it wasn't nearly as funny.

For some reason or another this reminded me of the problem of determining the height of a building using a barometer. I first heard it as a skit on Saturday Night Live. (What were the two actors doing while this discussion was going on?) The first possibility is “

You tie a long piece of string to the neck of the barometer, then lower the barometer from the roof of the skyscraper to the ground. The length of the string plus the length of the barometer will equal the height of the building.”

Unlike the source linked to here, Snopes says seems skeptical of the claim that Niels Bohr really did this.

Finally while we're on the subject of tests, Opinion Journal's Best of the Web Today on Tuesday had a moderately difficult Presidential Trivia quiz.

Answers can be found here. And even though puzzle blogger Kevan Choset helped out there's no answer "None of them were in my kitchen."

Technorati tags: Mathematical proofs, humor, trivia.

Administrivia

In the left column, above the calendar there's an icon that says "Feedblitz." I learned about it from Crossing the Rubicon2. If you click on it you can subscribe to Soccer Dad. Every day that I post you'll get links to my latest entries with brief synopses of each one.

A matter of pride: Soccer Dad has been named an "essential link" by Honest Reporting. Along with a number of better known blogs and blogging friend It's Almost Supernatural, it was very nice to be recognized by this fine organization.

I recently dug up an old e-mail exchange. (From 4 years ago!) I asked my correspondent:

Pardon a personal question but what is a blogger? Several times a week I send out links to articles about Israel, sometimes with comments. Does that make me a blogger?

The response:

A blogger is someone who has a website that is updated frequently, often daily, more often several times a day. You're doing very much what bloggers do, but people can't refer to your page or read the archives because you use email instead of a web page.

So you're an email blogger, I guess. ;-)

The real blogger was Meryl Yourish. With that encouragement, sometime about 9 months later I really did start blogging. That fills in a detail of my blogging history.

Technorati tags: Blogging, Honest Reporting, FeedBlitz.

Maryland politics 05/11/2006

Maryland Conservatarian has a word about the decision of Joseph Curran not to seek another term as Attorney General of Maryland: "yay" He also takes issue with some points in the Sun's hagiographic portrayal of Curran.

The Sun also seems to have forgotten that it did not endorse him in 1994 against Republican Dick Bennett (The Baltimore Sun, For Governor, A.G. and Comptroller, Nov 4, 1994) :

For attorney general -- Republican Richard D. Bennett, a former U.S. attorney who could serve as watchdog as well as counselor to the governor and the various state agencies. There is always some ambiguity about the proper role of an attorney general. After eight years in which Democrat J. Joseph Curran Jr. was too much an advocate for those holding state power rather than as a tribune for the people, we believe a change is in order. Mr. Bennett would serve as a counter to the ambitious Mr. Glendening; he also would serve as a moderate GOP counterweight to the ideological swerve to the right Mrs. Sauerbrey would represent.

And he doesn't ignore the governor's race either and takes shots at the Sun's substance vs. style portrayal of the race. I think that Duncan started off with a charisma deficit and only increased it when he picked Simms. I'm not saying that Duncan and Simms don't have solid records of public service behind them. But they are not as telegenic as O'Malley and Brown both of whom are younger and fitter. (When O'Malley would wear "muscle shirts" as he performed with O'Malley's March; you could see why they're called muscle shirts. Del. Brown is a lawyer who served in Iraq. The charisma factor with those two is very pronounced.)

Meanwhile Monoblogue has come up with 10 questions for candidates who will be running in his area. I hope he gets responses. If the candidates pay attention to him, this could be a great idea for citizen journalism.

Technorati tags: Maryland politics, Election 2006.

Parasites of the media

In a Tech Central Station column "Newspapers in Trouble" a few weeks ago, Instapundit took a new look at what newspapers are and how they do their jobs. Among his suggestions are that the newspaper has to view its product and employees differently. Newspapers need to view their product as news and their delivery system as paper. And he believes that paper is obsolete. Furthermore he argues that newspapers ought to combine the job of reporter/photographer, insisting that reporters learn to take their own pictures.

One other idea he has is that news organizations should take blog criticism seriously and incorporate constructive criticism of bias and inaccuracy into the final product. (This idea is echoed here in a review of Army of Davids.)

I had wondered about a different idea, that involves a different type of reorganization.

Certain newspapers (the New York Times and Washington Post come to mind) have reputations of "national" newspapers with established bureaus around the world. A paper like the Baltimore Sun has some international staff but hardly on the same level. I realize that there's a lot of prestige in having foreign bureaus.

But maybe newspapers should concentrate on what they do best. Perhaps a second tier newspaper like the Baltimore Sun should forget about its foreign bureaus and concentrate its efforts on local reporting.

Then rather than publishing independently, it could offer its local reportage to the NY Times (for example) so that the Times could have a national edition for the Baltimore area. Other local newspapers could do make similar arrangements.

However, for now, newspapers still need to deal with the reality of today.

NRO's media blog reports on falling circulation of newspapers

Editor & Publisher reports that newspapers have suffered a historically large circulation drop of 2.5 percent over the past six months, but that newspaper Web sites are drawing 8 percent more traffic than last year...

This leads to

The big question is whether newspapers will start charging for online content, and what kinds of content they will reserve for subscribers.

Bloggers are media parasites. Or maybe I should qualify that: bloggers like me are media parasites. I rarely do my own reporting, I just comment on the content that's already out there. If I didn't have access to original (if extremely flawed) reporting I'd probably cut down on my blogging a lot.

However it might not be necessary to avoid using newspapers as sources for blogging even if the newspapers start charging individuals for their content. Newspapers already charge institutions for access to their archives. And if you have a relationship with those institutions you qualify for access to those archives.

The most accessible source for news content is your public library. In Maryland, now, you don't have to go to the library to research the library's archives. If you have a library card, you have access to the system of the jurisdiction for which you have the card from your home computer.

Some organizations give their employees access to newspaper archives too. And I would guess, though I don't know for certain, that many colleges give access to their faculty and students.

The libraries have paid the news companies large sums of money to hae access to the archives, there's no reason not to use them.

In the future newspapers might present news without the paper. In nearer term its possible that even current content will cost.

But for now I'm just going to continue my parasitical relationship with newspapers.

Technorati tags: Blogging, Journalism, Newspapers.

The fisk flag returns

Remember the American flag with the Stars of David in its star field that adorned the cover the Independent that featured the Fisk interview of Walt and Mearsheimer? (OpinionJournal found that it resembled a graphic from a neo-Nazi publication.)

Well there's a similar picture here. An American flag, with a single Star of David in the blue field. And who was responsible for it?

Palestinian Hamas supporters attend a demonstration

One of the neat things about blogging is how informed many bloggers are. A number of bloggers, for example, discovered the content of the letter that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (I'll never learn to write or pronounce his name, I cut and paste it all the time) wrote to President Bush.

For one, ScrappleFace has found out the contents of the letter and it includes his top 5 solutions for the problems in the Middle East

5) Wipe Israel off the face of the map. Replace with goat ranch.
4) U.S. buys Iranian oil. I make threatening statements causing uncertainty in petroleum markets. We use the windfall profits to pay Russia to help us make nuclear devices, and to pay China to stop U.N. sanctions. U.S. continues to buy Iranian oil.
3) Get U.N. to adopt ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy regarding uranium enrichment.
2) Put Zionists in boxcars. Send back to Europe. Replace Israel with goat ranch.
1) U.S. joins global Muslim Caliphate, ensuring peace and bountiful supplies of enriched uranium for all of Allah’s people.

But ScrappleFace is not alone the intrepid Israelly Cool! found the contents of the letter that the American administration is supposedly "cool" to and tells us in From Mahmoud to Dubya. It reads in part

I am saddened by the cold relatives between our nations, and would like to heat them up considerably. We need new solutions for getting out of international problems and current fragile situation of the world. I would very much like to arrive at a final solution.

These guys are great aren't they. What? They can't both be right? But they told me... Well surely one of them is. It's a slam dunk isn't it?

Technorati tags: Iran, Ahmadinejad, President Bush, letter.

My mahmoud wrote me a letter

One of the neat things about blogging is how informed many bloggers are. A number of bloggers, for example, discovered the content of the letter that Mahmoud Ahmadinejad (I'll never learn to write or pronounce his name, I cut and paste it all the time) wrote to President Bush.

For one, ScrappleFace has found out the contents of the letter and it includes his top 5 solutions for the problems in the Middle East

5) Wipe Israel off the face of the map. Replace with goat ranch.
4) U.S. buys Iranian oil. I make threatening statements causing uncertainty in petroleum markets. We use the windfall profits to pay Russia to help us make nuclear devices, and to pay China to stop U.N. sanctions. U.S. continues to buy Iranian oil.
3) Get U.N. to adopt ‘Don’t ask, don’t tell’ policy regarding uranium enrichment.
2) Put Zionists in boxcars. Send back to Europe. Replace Israel with goat ranch.
1) U.S. joins global Muslim Caliphate, ensuring peace and bountiful supplies of enriched uranium for all of Allah’s people.

But ScrappleFace is not alone the intrepid Israelly Cool! found the contents of the letter that the American administration is supposedly "cool" to and tells us in From Mahmoud to Dubya. It reads in part

I am saddened by the cold relatives between our nations, and would like to heat them up considerably. We need new solutions for getting out of international problems and current fragile situation of the world. I would very much like to arrive at a final solution.

These guys are great aren't they. What? They can't both be right? But they told me... Well surely one of them is. It's a slam dunk isn't it?

UPDATE: I'm learning of more and more variations on the letter. Thanks to Jewish Current Issues for the link to Lileks

. . . Our people glow with pride over our nuclear efforts, sometimes literally. I repeat that the enrichment is for peaceful purposes only, and we seek only peace, and peace is our goal, and there is nothing more we love than peace. Except death. Sorry; forgot. Death is definitely number one. In third place of things we love, well, there were those nice ice-cream desserts they had at this little place in Tehran. When I was Mayor I had them brought in on Fridays. Good times, good times. But once I found a hair.

From Jihad Watch

You think you can defeat us? ROFL! Like, if you even try this, the same mesmerizing light from Heaven that transfixed the UN diplomats when I spoke in New York will envelop the White House in a weird blue paralyzing glow. This will prevent you from peering into my soul and stealing its secrets ...

From Six Meat Buffet (via the Jawa Report )

The Old Media has noted the complexity and depth of the letter, implying that, perhaps, it’s a little over the President’s head. Luckily, our crack staff was able to get a copy of the letter itself, which demonstrates quite the opposite.

scroll down to see the graphic.

If there are any other spoofs let me know!

BTW, Jewish Current Issues sent me a link to Power Line criticizing the media for whitewashing the Ahmadinejad letter.

Technorati tags: Iran, Ahmadinejad, President Bush, letter.

Every form of refuge has its price

For somewhere between $300 and $500 a group of 30 people can rent an unusual venue to watch the La Crosse (Wisconsin)Loggers (not Bloggers) play baseball. In fact the cabin has become so popular, the Loggers are building a second one to accomodate their fans.

The price for Austin Spriggs's home, was quite a bit higher. Located in an area being developed into luxury condominiums, Spriggs refused an offer of $2.5 million - saying he would have sold for $5 million. The city appraised the value of his house at about $200,000.

The crater is a block long, a block wide and four stories deep, a canyon on Massachusetts Avenue NW between the Washington Convention Center and Union Station.

Earthmovers, so far down at the bottom that they resemble Tonka toys, burrow even deeper. Diesel engines groan, front-loaders beep and the ground shudders with each strike of the steel buckets from the backhoes. Dump trucks shudder up a dirt hill in a dusty convoy from the pit to the street. The pile driving, with its thunderous rhythms, is poised to begin.

And there, on the edge of this gaping chasm, is a stunning symbol of defiance: a tiny townhouse, clinging to a spit of remaining earth.

A net of steel pipes and heavy brackets has been positioned to prop up the house on three sides, but it looks as if at any moment it might crash into the hole. Just three feet of land on either side separate the house from the 40-foot drop-off.
...
Securing the Spriggs house during construction has added about $600,000 in costs, which is split between Penzance and Broadway. The house is monitored five days a week to make sure it isn't moving, said Doug Lewis of Davis Construction. The work, which started in December, is scheduled to be finished next year.

And if the situation isn't surreal enough, Spriggs is turning his home into a Ledo pizza franchise.

Technorati tags: Austin Spriggs, Ledo Pizza, /spike/, minor league baseball.

Tony and tacky

Israel Perspectives ran his list of top (or, more precisely bottom) 10 essays in honor of Yom Ha'atzmaut. Ironically the top (bottom) two have problems geting their stories straight. The first, by Tony Judt, argues that Israel is an adolescent that has yet to grow up; the second, by Yossi Klein, portrays Israel as poorly maintained middle aged man. With its critics Israel's just can't win.

Of course Tony Judt is a professor someplace. But his station in life is no guarantee of wisdom. Read Tony Judt: Gee, if only Israel were liked again by Meryl Yourish to see what an amateur can do against a well credentialed scholar. With two paragraphs she neatly summarize her complete argument

Essentially, his argument is one of sheer anecdotal evidence. Since he remembers that people on his college campus actually liked Israel back then, obviously, that was how the world was. Physical evidence of anti-Israel resolutions notwithstanding, Judt has declared Israel to be popular — until shortly after the Six-Day War, when the territories came under Israeli control. (As for college students not caring about events nine years previous, well, uh, duh. College students, hello!)

But Israel tried to give the territories back. With the exception of Jerusalem, they were ready to give Jordan the West Bank, and Egypt Gaza and Sinai. All they asked in return from their neighbors was peace. But the Arab nations refused. By putting that responsibility solely on Israel’s shoulders, Judt ignores the Arab nations’ infamous “Three No’s of Khartoum“: No negotiation, no recognition, and no peace with Israel. Judt ignores the fact that the occupation is mostly the fault of the Arabs, and that Israel did not want to control the West Bank and Gaza.

And if one doesn't want a complete rebuttal, there's always It's almost supernatural who generally sums up Israel's many accomplishments. And while not addressing Judt, Jewish Current Issues' recounting of Israel's growth serves as another rebuke to the confused professor.

And if I may add my own observation: In recent years Israel has sent rescue missions to Christians in central America; Muslims in Turkey; Hindus in India; Europeans in Georgia; and Africans in Tanzania and Kenya.

In other words, Israel, instead of acting like an adolescent and turning inward when it's been besieged, Israel has learned lessons from its embattled status and used those lessons to help others regardles of religion, race or nationality. Mr Judt's characterization couldn't be more wrong.

For other posts about Israel in Soccer Dad.

Technorati tags: Israel, Israeli relief efforts.

Crossposted on Israpundit and Soccer Dad.

The international religious court

Dr. Robert O. Freedman has a solution to the International Cartoon Crisis. (Unfortunately, the Baltimore Jewish Times's website doesn't really have an archive so you better read or save this gem before it disappears into the ether. I can only hope that some other publication or organization will pick it up before then.) Friday

The problem, of course, is to determine the difference between legitimate criticism of someone who acts in the name of a religion, and the negative depiction of that religion.

To solve that problem, I propose the creation of an International Religious Court, composed of Christian, Muslim and Jewish clergymen with one clergyman representing each of the three religions. Anyone feeling that his or her religion was insulted could appeal to the International Religious Court for a ruling on the matter, and the court would then determine whether a penalty should be invoked. It would be the responsibility of the government on whose territory the action took place to impose the penalty.

First of all this surprised me. Usually those of Dr. Freedman's persuasion reject the idea of giving a religious body any sort of authority over political matters. Apparently now, Dr. Freedman would approve of the Israeli government giving authority to the Chief Rabbinate.

And of course this religious court would serve to defuse tensions that might arise over insensitivity displayed towards another one's religion.

So if a Muslim in France, for example, decided to convert to Christianity - which is an affront to Islam - an Islamic country could appeal to this international court to have the apostate executed. And if a cartoonist in Denmark, hypothetically, drew a cartoon that was offensive to Islam, an Islamic country could appeal to the International Religious Court and appeal to have the cartoonist's hand amputated or, if the cartoon was really offensive, have the cartoonist stoned.

But why am I focusing on affronts to Islam, what about affronts to other religions. So say if Palestinians destroyed the tomb of Joseph, a Jewish shrine, hypothetically, Jews could appeal to the court for a punishment to be adminstered to the perpetrators and that would prevent violent worldwide Jewish protests, where Jews would burn cars and beat policemen in retaliation.

Or, if say, an Islamic government, chose to destroy Buddhist statues, totally hypothetically of course, this court could resolve the ensuing crisis by meting out punishment to the guilty parties. And that would prevent worldwide violent Buddhist protests to the violation of their sacred idols.

But many it wouldn't work because the hypothetical court would only have representatives of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. What about Buddhism and Hinduism?

Maybe Dr. Freedman needs to go back to the drawing board.

UPDATE: LGF writes (and thanks for the link!)

It takes a lot to make my jaw drop these days, but here’s an op-ed in Baltimore’s Jewish Times that achieved this near-impossible feat.

UPDATE II: This post is featured in this week's Carnival of the Insanities, with a pithy observation.

Technorati tags: Cartoon crisis, Islam, Religion.

Haveil Havalim #68 is UP!

You don't need to cross anything to view this week's Haveil Havalim #68 at Crossing the Rubicon2, just click on the link. And she did an excellent job in assembling the best of the J-Blogosphere this week. Did you know that she was one of the first 3 bloggers to whom I pitched the idea of Haveil Havalim?

Next week, I'll host. You know the drill. Use the forms below or e-mail me at dhgerstman at hotmail dot com.

To the many hosts and hostesses who have been so generous with their time, thank you for volunteering and having volunteered; you're the ones who do the work to keep this project going!

In addition to e-mail you may submit entries to Haveil Havalim using either Conservative Cat's handy dandy submission form or the submission form over at BlogCarnival.
Listed at the Truth Laid Bare Ubercarnival.
Technorati Tags: Blog carnivals, haveil havalim, Israel, Judaism.

Most recent editions of Haveil Havalim at Blog Carnival
#22 Mystical Paths
#21 Rabbinical Authority Consortium of HACKers
#20 Shiloh Musings
#19 Devarim
#18 Soccer Dad
#17 Mystical Paths
#16 Critical Mastiff
#15 Soccer Dad
#14 Multiple Mentality
#13 IsraPundit
#12 DovBear
#11 Kesher Talk
#10 Biur Chametz
#9 Soccer Dad
#8 It's Almost Supernatural
#7 Bloghead
#6 Willow Tree.
#5 Crossing the Rubicon2
#4 Dov Bear
#3 Biur Chametz

Giving the finger

What does it mean when the Palestinians raise a finger like in this picture? (Not the whole hand, just a finger.)

According to the caption:

A Palestinian scout boy holds a copy of the Quran, Islam's holy book, and raises his index finger, a sign that Muslims do referring to their belief in only one God

Or does it? In this picture the caption is

A Palestinian raises his hand during a Hamas rally in support of the Hamas government

Nothing about one God.

One thing I'm starting to figure out is that there are there a different narratives given by AP and Reuters. I'm wondering if that's really the meaning behind the single finger. Or is it some clever idea that the AP writer came up with this time. I don't recall having seen the explanationa before.

While we're noticing things about the pictures, I have a couple of questions.

Why does the boy in the top picture look terrified? Is it my imagination?

OK so the bottom picture shows a huge crowd. But the hand in the picture is well above the crowd. Is he really part of the rally? Or just a friend of the photographer Suhaib Salem? In the latter case it would mean that the photo was staged.

Tecnorati tags: Palestinian Authority, Hamas.

Offbeat family news

An Indian man has been living in a tree for 50 years after having a fight with his wife.

A man in India's eastern Orissa state has been living in a tree for the past 50 years following a quarrel with his wife.

Gayadhar Parida, 83, who lives in a tree in a village 240km north of the state capital Bhubaneshwar, has repeatedly turned down pleas by his wife and children to return home, a report said yesterday.

And as a number of other bloggers have noted

A 33-year-old man in northern Malaysia has married a 104-year-old woman, saying mutual respect and friendship had turned to love, a news report said Tuesday.

It was Muhamad Noor Che Musa's first marriage and his wife's 21st, according to The Star newspaper, which cited a report in the Malay-language Harian Metro tabloid.

And if one's never too old to get married, they may never be too old to have a child

A woman who will become one of Britain's oldest mothers when she gives birth at 63 on Thursday defended her right to be an older parent.

Patricia Rashbrook, a child psychiatrist from Lewes, south of London, has two grown children from a previous marriage but recently remarried and underwent fertility treatment.

She is due to give birth in two months.

Technorati tags: family, marriage.

Hey big spenders

One disappointment for conservatives during the Bush presidency has been the government's growth. Ironically it was a Democratic president who declared that the era of big government was over but his successor introduced the era of huge government.

At the Volokh Conspiracy, Ilya Somin writes in George W, Richard Nixon, and Big Government Conservatism

I do not think that W is personally venal and paranoid in the way that Nixon was, nor has his administration (at least so far) produced a scandal comparable to Watergate. But the similarities between their domestic policies are real and, to my mind, extremely disturbing.

He spends time quoting from 3 conservative commentators who are all critical of President Bush's lack of fiscal discipline.

Strangely that made me recall that the President has (had?) at least one defender: Michael Barone. Barone in Choice and Accountability argued that Bush was not a "liberal" spender but was redefining conservatism

Bush has redefined conservatism. It is now not the process of cutting government and devolving powers; it is the process of installing choice and accountability into government even at the cost of allowing it to grow. This is an attempt to move government in the same direction as the private sector, which now offers much more in the way of choice and accountability than it did in the 1950s and 1960s, when big corporations and big unions established wage rates, when you worked for one company until age 65 and then depended on that one company and Social Security for your retirement income.

Though I like Barone a lot, I don't find that defense all that convincing.

Instapundit takes a look at spending from the Congressional side and concludes

I think we should term-limit some folks this November, but he's right. The argument against going ahead on term limits was that electing Republicans would fix things. It didn't.

Yes, when Republicans were in the minority it was easy for them to abide by principles of fiscal discipline. But if the power to tax involves the power to destroy it is also a truism that the power to spend is the power to get re-elected and few narcotics have the addictive power of incumbenc.

When Clinton was President the fiscal discipline of the Republicans was a function of their trying to deprive him of initiative. With President Bush Republicans have no such motivation. Bush's spending helps them.

But what if a politician was term limited? The appeal of better committee assignments or more institutional power would be limited. Without the temptation of having his sense of indispensibility enhanced, a politician would be more willing to govern for the good of his constituents rather than for extending his tenure.

To some degree the Republicans were true to their word as they insisted that committee chairmen have limited tenures. Unfortunately that wasn't enough. Only those for whom politics is a secondary interest will willingly cede power or not seek greater power. And that is a rarity in either party.

Technorati tags: Politics, Congress, President Bush, Republicans, spending.

Tell by its bark

There's this tree next to our house that never really impressed me much. The flowers seemed sort of bland.

But when I moved in closer and took a picture of a section of the tree, it looked ... stunning.

I've also noticed around the neighborhood the similar trees with pink flowers not white.

(I guess from here, that it's a pink dogwood and that our tree is a white dogwood.

Of couse these are nothing compared to our crape myrtle.

Technorati tags: flowering trees, photography.

Krauthammer celebrates yom ha'atzamaut?

In his column "Never Again?" Charles Krauthammer implicitly celebrates Yom Ha'atzmaut

When something happens for the first time in 1,871 years, it is worth noting. In A.D. 70, and again in 135, the Roman Empire brutally put down Jewish revolts in Judea, destroying Jerusalem, killing hundreds of thousands of Jews and sending hundreds of thousands more into slavery and exile. For nearly two millennia, the Jews wandered the world. And now, in 2006, for the first time since then, there are once again more Jews living in Israel -- the successor state to Judea -- than in any other place on Earth.

But with that remarkable rebirth comes a great risk

The establishment of Israel was a Jewish declaration to a world that had allowed the Holocaust to happen -- after Hitler had made his intentions perfectly clear -- that the Jews would henceforth resort to self-protection and self-reliance. And so they have, building a Jewish army, the first in 2,000 years, that prevailed in three great wars of survival (1948-49, 1967 and 1973).

But in a cruel historical irony, doing so required concentration -- putting all the eggs back in one basket, a tiny territory hard by the Mediterranean, eight miles wide at its waist. A tempting target for those who would finish Hitler's work.

Krauthammer then makes the case that Hitler's successors are based in Tehran and are seeking nuclear weapons toward the end of finishing his work. And he accuses the world of standing by.

(Interesting, just a few days ago thousands of Jews were protesting a different - but current - danger using the phrase "Never Again" and variations.)

But Krauthammer is perhaps too kind. The world hasn't just stood by. It has challenged Israel's legitimacy time and again. By using the Palestinian stalking horse against Israel the world has weakened Israel and made Israel more vulnerable to the likes of Iran.

Seemingly Israel needs the permission of the world to defend itself and that can only encourage the likes of Iran.

Krauthammer has two other items with similar themes. One is At Last Zion and the other is his Guardian of Zion speech from four years ago. The first how Israel is essential to the survival of the Jews; the second is about the dangers of messianic pacifism.

Technorati tags: Israel, Iran, Judaism.

Read more articles about Charles Krauthammer at Soccer Dad.
Read more articles about Israel at Soccer Dad.

Crossposted on Israpundit and Soccer Dad.

70000

Wow. Yesterday I hit 70000. Of course it took me twice as long to get from 60000 to 70000 as it did to get from 50000 to 60000. Part of that is that blogging slowed down over Pesach. But in February I got two Instalanches that accounted for about 5000 hits over a weekend. Here are some details without getting too specific.

Domain Name hhs.gov ? (United States Government)

State : District of Columbia
City : Washington

Time of Visit May 3 2006 1:54:23 pm

Visit Number 70,000

Recently I've had some interesting visitors. There's this one:

Country : Iran, Islamic Republic of (Facts)

Referring URL http://www.google.co...ejad%2Bfunny&spell=1
Search Engine google.com
Search Words ahmadinejad funny
Visit Entry Page http://soccerdad.bal...is_indeed_funny.html

Naturally, I'm not letting out any more info.

And today I had a search for

Referring URL http://www.google.co... palestine jew sales
Search Engine google.com
Search Words hamas land ownership palestine jew sales
Visit Entry Page http://soccerdad.bal...ans_have_spoken.html
Visit Exit Page http://soccerdad.bal...ans_have_spoken.html

Look at those search terms. Where was it coming from?

Domain Name ford.com ? (Commercial)
IP Address 136.1.1.# (Ford Motor Company)
ISP Ford Motor Company
Location Continent : North America
Country : United States (Facts)
State : Michigan
City : Dearborn
Lat/Long : 42.3127, -83.1923 (Map)

And I even got a visitor from the UN

Domain Name undp.org ? (Organization)
IP Address 165.65.35.# (United Nations Development Programme)
ISP United Nations Development Programme

What's not surprising is that the visitor was looking for info about James Wolfensohn.

What is surprising is that the visitor apparently looked around a bit.

Visit Length 2 minutes 5 seconds
Page Views 2

Technorati tag: Blogging.

Passive aggressive negotiating tactics

The other night I was listening to the Orioles//Blue Jays game when the Blue Jays brought in BJ Ryan to close out the game. The Baltimore crowd started booing the pitcher as the announcer suggested because Ryan betrayed (I think that was his word) the Orioles.

Something similar probably happened when Johnny Damon showed up back in Boston after spurning the Red Sox for the hated rival Yankees. But as Ken Rosenthal notes, Boston fans have no reason to despise Damon

Damon, 32, left the Red Sox exactly as he joined them: as a free agent.

It wasn't betrayal; it was business.

If memory serves correct, few in New England felt sorry for the A's when Damon bolted them for a four-year, $32 million contract with the Red Sox after the 2001 season. Probably even fewer felt sorry for the Royals when they traded Damon to the A's the year before, knowing they could not sign him to a contract extension.

And though the Orioles traded for BJ Ryan, there's no reason to boo him. No it's Orioles management that's at fault for the departure of the pitcher. Dan Connolly writes in the Baltimore Sun Because this is the way the Orioles often operate.

Each winter we hear it from agents and other teams: "The Orioles were interested, but they didn't get back to us." Or, "They just weren't as aggressive as the others." Or the real killer, "They are very difficult to deal with." As an outstanding attorney, Angelos has made a career of being cautious and deliberate. No one ever forces his hand. It's not a bad business strategy, either. But there comes a time when you should move swiftly so you don't alienate others.

A great example of what not to do sat in the opposing dugout last night.

Ryan set a negotiating deadline for the end of spring training last year, the sides exchanged initial figures that were less than $5 million apart and then the Orioles never countered again. Instead of paying $15 million in March, he left for $47 million in November

.

The Orioles lost Mussina because they waited for him. The Yankees instead made him a generous offer on the condition that he didn't try to match it. The Orioles have come accross as passive aggressive negotiators.

This article would suggest that the fault with the Orioles doesn't necessarily lie with the general managers as much as it lies with the boss who ties their hands by inaction.

Now we have to ask, did the O's fail to land Phil Nevin last year because of this? Did they fail to land Vladimir Guerrero because of similar malfeasance? (At the time it was said that the Angels were more attractive to Guerrero because of the Hispanic community in Anaheim. But maybe that was just an excuse.)

It's looking more and more that we O's fans have little to look forward to as long as Peter Angelos owns the team. When he bought the team he had a tremendous amount of goodwill because he was the local guy. But local guy doesn't automatically mean good owner. Since 1997 this franchise has been pathetic and we have little to look forward to at this point.

I wonder if Maryland taxpayers who funded the stadium and added value to the franchise Angelos owns could qualify as a class. There would be some poetic justice in seeing a class action suit filed against Angelos for his mismanagement of our team.

Read more items about the Orioles at Soccer Dad.

Technorati tags: Peter Angelos, Orioles, Baseball.

Stop it, wolfie!

Financial wizard and former World Bank President James Wolfensohn is stepping down as a special envoy to the Palesitnian Authority. He has words of warning

International envoy James Wolfensohn, in his final report to Middle East mediators after stepping down, sharply questioned the decision of Western powers to cut off aid to the Hamas-led Palestinian government.

Having spent more than $1 billion a year on assistance to the Palestinians, much of it to build government institutions and an economy needed to create a "viable Palestinian state," the report asked: "Will we now simply abandon these goals?"

Hold on.

$1 billion a year has gotten us exactly what?

Perhaps that last paragraph (and report) needs to be rephrased to something like:

Despite having spent more than $1 billion a year on assistance to the Palestinians they are no closer to building government institutions and an economy needed to create a "viable Palestinian state," the report asked: "Will we continue throwing good many after bad?"

Wolfensohn is treated as some sort of expert about the Palestinian economy. He, of course, donated a substantial sum of his own money to the PA, only to see it go for naught. At another point he said that Israel wasn't doing enough to promote the PA even after withdrawing from Gaza. Israel eventuall opened the Rafah crossing only to see terrorists enter Gaza from Egypt and Wolfensohn said nothing.

He is not an advocate for Palestinian viability as much as he's an advocate for sending more money to the PA regardless of the result. Perhaps its because he doesn't wish to be the only loser who made a bad investment in the Palestinians. But if the money hasn't worked until now, it's hard to see how it will work in the future.

In another article about Wolfensohn's retirement we read

The United States considers Hamas a terrorist group and refuses to help it until it recognizes Israel, renounces violence and agrees to respect agreements struck by the previous Palestinian government.

Again perhaps the paragraph would be more accurate if it were rewritten

The United States refuses to help Hamas because it is a terrorist group that promotes violence against Israel and refuses to respect agreements struck by the previous Palestinian government.

It is not simply the judgment of the United States that Hamas is a terrorist organization, Hamas fits the definition of one. The only way to finesse that inconvenient fact is to portray it as a political judgment. So that's what AFP and other news organizations do.

Read more articles about James Wolfensohn at Soccer Dad.
Read more articles about Hamas at Soccer Dad.

UPDATE: Thanks to Dr. Sanity for including this in this week's Carnival of the Insanities.

Technorati tags: James Wolfensohn, Hamas, Israel.

Crossposted on Israpundit and Soccer Dad.

If ... you must 05/03/2006

I haven't done this in a while so some of these are a little old

Twists

If you haven't read Fire Ant Gazette's I'm Pro Choice (When it comes to the Dixie Chicks); you must.

If you haven't read The Southern Front: Los Hombres Latinos del Minutemen at Kesher Talk; you must.

They hate us

If you haven't seen Cox and Forkum's Victim Hoods; you must.

If you haven't read Clarity and Resolves Paying to be hated; you must.
Laura's comment is right on!

If you haven't read Judgment at Nuremberg at Powerline; you must.

Funny lawyers

If you haven't read Eugen Volokh's Problem for my Criminal Law Review Session at the Volokh Conspiracy; you must.

If you haven't read Harvard and Yale head toward Nuclear Confrontation at Pillage Idiot; you must.

If you haven't read I like a station wagon at Mirty's Place; you must.
So she's not a lawyer. She's still funny.

If you haven't read PsychoToddler's The Four Bloggers; you must.
He's not a lawyer either; he's also funny

Law and disorder

If you haven't read Roger L. Simon's No Amnesty for Amnesty; you must.

If you haven't read Mexico to legalize drug use at Sushi Kiddush; you must.

If you haven't read Stupid Criminals - The Series at Secular Blasphemy; you must.

Geography

If you haven't read Hube's I'm against the Iraq war ... now where is that exactly. at Colossus of Rhodey; you must.

If you haven't read Am Echad's Welcome Home, Scott; you must.
Fortunately Scott knows his geography.

Tecnorati tag: Blogging.

The good name of hamas

I came across this article in which Danny Rubinstein recounts all the slanders against Hamas that have been circulating recently ...

Is there a danger that Hamas and al-Qaida could be linked? Warnings to such an effect could be heard last week, after the release of an Osama bin Laden tape expressing support for Hamas, which, he said, was defending itself against the "Zionist-Crusader offensive." Even C. David Welch, the U.S. assistant secretary for Near Eastern affairs, discussed such a danger. Hamas is very angry at these reports, and views them as attempts to muddy the organization's name, as part of the repeated efforts to topple the democratically elected government of Ismail Haniyeh.

...
Hamas is complaining that the campaign against the organization includes the spreading of lies, citing the report Jordan released about capturing a Hamas cell that had smuggled weapons and explosives. Citing the capture of the cell, the Jordanian government canceled a visit to Amman by Palestinian Foreign Minister Mahmoud Zahar of Hamas.

I find it touching that Hamas is so concerned about its image. After a year (at least) where Hamas has been portrayed as a bunch of good government policy wonks, they seem bothered that they're now being linked with Al Qaeda.

But Hamas denies this

Hamas officials say this is also why the rumors of the ties with al-Qaida have been going around. Hamas completely denies these rumors, saying that Hamas' goal is national - a struggle against Israel - while al-Qaida has all-embracing religious goals.

Those noble Hamas-niks, they only wish to kill innocent Jewish men, women and children, they are not so extreme as to wish to attack all Western targets. Of course Rubinstein ends off with an ominous warning

But if Hamas is pushed into a corner and the distress and anarchy in the West Bank and Gaza intensify, a comfortable backdrop for al-Qaida activity in Palestine could develop - and then, the assertion that Hamas is tied to al-Qaida will become a self-fulfilling prophecy.

The idea that two Islamist terror groups with different overall goals couldn't find common ground except under duress is laughable given that there already are known ties between Hezbollah and Hamas.

Sticking up for the good name of Hamas must be a difficult job. It used to be that Hamas were just a bunch of anti-corruption politicians with quaint views on Israel. Then they saw nothing wrong with a terror attack two weeks ago. So now the defense has changed. Hamas is good, because it's no al-Qaida.

Of israel and cisterns

In honor of Yom Ha'atzmaut, Daled Amos started a meme

an Israel meme.
I thought it would be a good opportunity to share together experiences we have had in Israel or stories we have heard.

SerAndEz tagged me.

Aqueduct in Caesaria

Three years ago, my parents took us to Israel to celebrate Pesach with my brother's family in Israel. While we were there, I was able to see Israel in a way I never had before.

Perhaps it was by virtue of my age or maybe I was inspired by being there with my family, but I noticed things I hadn't before.

One thing that struck was the cisterns (and, for that matter, the aqueduct in Caeseria).

Cisterns are holes in the ground. They were reinforced with a plaster. And they were built to store water during the rainy season - about 2000 years ago.

Cistern in the Hashmonean tunnel near the Kotel

We saw cisterns at Massada, in Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) and Zippori (Sepphoris). And, of course, the aqueduct at Caesaria. All are reminders that there weren't just people living in Judea 2000 years ago, but that there was a society.

No matter how one views the state of Israel now, what the cisterns reminded me of is that after 2000 years a Jewish state was reconstituted in the same place it had existed previously. No other country in the world can make that claim.

That makes Israel unique. Not just unique, but a miracle.

Technorati tag: Israel.

I'd like to tag the Hashmonean, http://scottageb.blogspot.com/">Perspectives of a Nomad, I'm Ha'aretz PhD (whose post might already qualify) and http://www.oceanguy.us/">Ocean Guy with this Israel meme.

UPDATE: Links have been updated to reflect the excellent contributions of the Hashmonean, Reflections of a Nomad and Ocean Guy. Read them, they're top notch. I'm Ha'aretz PhD, as noted above already had a super contribution when I tagged her.

Though they weren't tagged there have been a number of other excellent Yom Ha'atzmaut posts:
http://hnn.us/blogs/entries/24677.html.
Israel's Proclamation of Independence at Smooth Stone.
The new state of Israel and Yom Ha'atzmaut at Boker Tov Boulder.
Israel Independence Day 2006 at Jewish Current Issues.
Something for everyone at CrossCurrents.
Proud to be a Zionist (5766 edition) by Elder of Ziyon.
Happy Independence Day by ConservaJew.
Happy Birthday to Israel and Yom Hazikaron at the Ignoble Experiment.
And SerAndEz (of course) has a number of roundups: A few beautiful posts (Thanks!), A few more from Olim and Reading Material & Funny Videos.
And whoops, I hadn't seen this: Daled Amos tracked down all of the meme's progeny.

Crossposted on Israpundit and Soccer Dad.

One year ago ...

It's hard to believe that nearly a year has passed since I stood with hundreds on a beautiful May day on a beautiful lawn. But the scrape of earth against wood reminded me that the unreality of the past few days was all too real.

Aaron, Elie and Debbie Rosenfeld's oldest son, passed away, just a few days after he was diagnosed with a brain tumor. Our prayers were answered in the negative.

In the jumble of memories going back to the Sunday morning we first heard the news that Aaron was critically ill, I remember feeling some sense of hope. The problem was that those who had informed us had Friday's news. And even that news was apparently innaccurate. But that's what happens.

I kept hoping or expecting to hear of a miracle; a never before experienced recovery. It wasn't until I spoke to Elie that Sunday night that I got a full idea that at that point that there was nothing left to do but wait.

The pain and loss were not my own. But when you watch a friend in pain; it's impossible not to feel it strongly too.

This Sunday - a year after I stood on that beautiful lawn, a year after my wife observed the incongruity of students getting into cars festooned with "Class of '05" and heading off for the cemetery - I plan to be at the inauguration of the Aaron Rosenfeld Memorial Fund.

It will be in the same Shul where I sat and heard Aaron's Rebbe say words to the effect of

In Israel Yeshivas were all asking Aaron 'come to my Yeshiva' but then Hashem said 'Come to my Yeshiva'

I do not know how my friends bear their pain and loss. It is one too great to imagine.

But I have watched this year as Elie has dealt with his loss with such dignity and poignancy. And anything I say will seem like so many cliches. Perhaps the best approach is to use the accepted formula

HaMakom yenachem eschem b'soch aveili Tzion Virushalayim / May God console you among the mourners of Zion and Jerusalem.

And may continue to share Simchos together.

Realism ain't what it used to be

Recently there have been some defenders of the Walt/Mearsheimer paper on the Israel lobby. I never bought the defense. If Walt and Mearsheimer were tendentiously claiming that they couldn't get their paper published because of the all powerful Israel Lobby there was never any doubt to benefit them.

Now they've gone to Robert Fisk for an interview in the Independent. And what do you see on the cover? A picture of the American flag with the star field made up of Stars of David instead of the standard five pointed ones. (See here and scroll down.) Classic ZOG (warning: vile link)material.

If Richard Cohen and Molly Ivins are honest they'd have to admit that Walt and Mearsheimer. Walt and Mearsheimer aren't naifs. I'm sure they know who they were dealing with when they dealt with Fisk. And barring any complaint from the pair about the cover picture we have to assume they approved it.

If you're interested in an antidote, there's an excellent one at Deja Vu.

Unfortunately, the only real American realists were found in the military. It stopped viewing Israel as a strategic liability, begun seeing it as a strategic asset and recommended a policy commensurate with that notion. As a result it stopped producing papers arguing against American support for Israel and producing papers on “U.S. Strategic Interest in Israel.”

Yup, the realist school of foreign policy viewed Israel as a strategic asset at its founding. Hmm. But now the realists are excused for viewing Israel as a liability. I guess that realism ain't what it used to be.

But then, with their conversation with Fisk, Walt and Mearsheimer have shown that "realism" is not their only motivation.

Technorati tags: Walt and Mearsheimer, Israel.

Related articles about Israel in Soccer Dad.
Related articles about Walt and Mearsheimer in Soccer Dad.

Crossposted on Israpundit and Soccer Dad.

Potato kugel

When I made this the day after Pesach (Passover) it looked so good, I just had to take a picture of it.

One of the differences between my Pesach kugels and my regular kugels are our food processors. For Pesach we have a brand new one with all the blades including the ones that grate. So I get a nice old fashioned long thin pieces of potato type kugel.

During the rest of the year we have a 20+ year old food processor. The grating blades have long since broken. But the machine still works beautifully even if the only thing I can do is puree the potatoes. So there's no point in replacing it.

And as you can see, the kugel still comes out great!

Technorati tag: potato kugel.

The washington post on the darfur rally

There are at least two points that really bug me about the Washington Post's coverage of yesterday's rally about Darfur. The Post's coverage was geared to show the diversity of the crowd. In Divisions Cast Aside in Cry for Darfur the Post reports

They wore skullcaps, turbans, headscarves, yarmulkes, baseball hats and bandanas. There were pastors, rabbis, imams, youths from churches and youths from synagogues. They cried out phrases in Arabic and held signs in Hebrew. But on this day, they said, they didn't come out as Jews or Muslims, Christians or Sikhs, Republicans or Democrats.

They came out as one, they said, to demand that the Bush administration place additional sanctions on Sudan and push harder for a multinational peacekeeping force to be sent to Darfur.

By Washington standards, where protests often draw more than 100,000 people, yesterday's rally -- estimated by organizers at between 10,000 and 15,000 -- was not huge. Yet the Rally to Stop Genocide appeared to be distinctive for being one of the more diverse rallies the capital has seen in years. Most demonstrations attract fairly homogenous crowds, who often share political, religious and ethnic makeup, as was the case when Latinos dominated immigration protests last month.

But as the Post reports later

Judging from T-shirts and banners identifying the various groups, Jews appeared to be among the largest contingent of demonstrators.

Certainly Jews were disproportionately represented.

But something else really stands out. If you look at the news pictures of the rally, it just confirms my observation from the corner where I stood: this was mostly a white person's rally. The Post did have some pictures of black groups, but most of the wide shots showed a sea of white faces.

So it looks to me, at least racially, that this protest was a lot less diverse than Post advertises. Unfortunately, this omission obscures a truth about the nature of race in our country. If blacks are being slaughtered and whites are over 90% of the protestors doesn't it show that our country is a bit more tolerant than conventionally thought?

In a companion article, Out of Diversity, a Unanimous Demand (I suppose the title is playing on E Pluribus Unum.) Al Sharpton is described

Sharpton, who at times has clashed with Jewish leaders, said: "I think it is historic, but the historic part of it will only mean something if we stop the genocide. We can't just have this as a picnic of interdenominational, interpolitical harmony. We must go to our respective constituents to have it stop."

"Clashed with Jewish leaders?!?!" This is an example of how this vicious man is whitewashed. Why not describe him like this?

Sharpton, who, in the past, has lashed out at "Jewish diamond dealers" and led a demonstration that escalated into a massacre at a Jewish owned business ..."

That would have the effect of being honest. In the meantime Sharpton is described not as an antisemite but as a civil rights leader, as if anyone who wraps himself in that mantle is granted immunity from criticism.

I realize that in the Post's world diversity is an universal good. I wish that it believed that truth was also one.

Technorati tags: Al Sharpton, diversity, Washington Post.