Friday 16 January 2009

BUT IS IT A CRIME ?



The economist isn't antisemitic, and it isn't Zionist, either. It does it's best to be factual and thoughtful in a rational way. Personally, I think its line could afford to be a bit more understanding of Israel's situation, but that's just me. And of course, there's an advantage to the fact that you can't plausibly see them as pro-Israel: it enhances their reliability when they land on Israel's side of an argument.


As seems sort of to happened on the issue of war crimes. Somebody at the Economist went looking for British experts on the laws of war and civilian casualties, and came back with the understanding that what Israel is doing in Gaza may include war crimes, but only in specific cases, once they've been investigated. The fact of killing civilians itself - while tragic and horrific - is not illegal, and there are even indications Israel is making an effort not to cross red lines.


Of course you might ask if the Economist regularly poses this question whenever anyone else (the UK included) goes to war, and the answer is probably no. What that means, however, is moot. It could easily be an antipathy to Israel; but it just as easily could be an antipathy to the screeches of the Guardian and its ilk.


Ah, yes: it is indeed sweet when the Economist is more on our side than our own so-called human rights organizations, ACRI and their ilk.
taken from : Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations (http://yaacovlozowick.blogspot.com/)

HORDES OF JEW HATERS



Pajama Media has a round up of recent expressions of antisemitism. Meryl Yourish has had two of these recently.


I'm mostly linking to these useful resources for future reference. An intelligent cataloging of items is almost always preferable to Google; that's what I make part of my living from.


It is however interesting to see how things change. Back when I began observing such matters, some 25 years ago, the mantra was that the critics were not antisemites, heaven forbid, they were actually friends of Israel, and all they were doing was a spot of friendly critical engagement. Kritischer Auseinandersetzung, in German, a term I found so peculiar at the time it remains etched in my psyche. I remember once asking one of these critical engagers what made him think his understanding of the situation was so superior to ours that he might have anything useful to say. He looked pained, I remember - though to be fair, his subsequent positions indeed prove that he decided to learn first and condemn either later or not at all.


Nowadays, it seems, the party line is no longer critical friendly engagement, but the need to be even-handed. Here's a German blogger who's having a tiff with the editor of the Sueddeutsche Zeitung; the editor apparently feels vindicated because people from both sides of the story are miffed at her, proving she must be right. A juvenile line of reasoning. This fellow continues to dog the Frankfurter Algemeine Zeitung for their intellectual and professional sloppiness. Lizas Welt is always a nice place to visit if you're feeling glum about the state of the world, and want to hear a German tell you you're right about it. And of course, you shouldn't miss Achse Des Guten (Axis of Good), parts of which are in English, to get a feeling for the malice that swirls round Europe (and elsewhere) these days.


Having said all this, however, I'd like to bring a different, or partially different perspective, sent by e-mail from Bremen. My correspondent is actually mildly surprised, he tells me, by the fact that things aren't all that bad, and he tells of five different reactions he's picking up in the German public sphere.
1. The top politicians. They're mostly silent, but in a pro-Israel way. This is certainly true of Angela Merkl, who indeed has been a pleasant surprise since she took office.
2. The media. He thinks they're not as bad as the Guardian, but admits that's not much of a recommendation.
3. The demonstrators. These are almost exclusively Muslims of this group or that, along with a smattering of far-Lefties (which brings us back to the Guardian...)
4. The handful of Israel's supporters, most of them Jews or nearby - to which I'll add that there's another group, even smaller, of German Left-wingers whose primary impulse is to dislike what mainstream German society does, and who've decided that since mainstream German society is anti-Israel, they're now staunch Zionists. There are such people, I've had occasion to meet hundreds of them, among the 80-million Germans.
5. Finally, so my correspondent, the most surprising group are the vox populi (we might call it "The German Street"). The run-of-the-mill Germans, he tells me, seem mostly neutral about Israel's actions in Gaza, having been convinced that Hamas really did provoke the violence.


Is this happening also elsewhere in Europe? I haven't been to Poland for a number of months, and haven't been trawling Polish media sites. The Iberians and Greeks seem pretty adamant in their hatred.
taken from : Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations (http://yaacovlozowick.blogspot.com/)

IN THE MAIL : MORE REALITY CHECK


Yesterday I used some statistics supplied by the Economist to posit that perhaps Israel isn't about to collapse.


An anonymous reader pointed out, however, that Israel is much less generous in handing out international aid than the size of its economy warrants, ranking only 98th instead of a much more reasonable 20-something.


Which is true. Moreover, it's not something to be proud of. Israel should do better at assisting the poorest nations (and now that I've read Jeffrey Sachs, I even know what sort of things need to be done with the money). I emphasized that sentence, so as partially to override the next one:


But.


There's often a But. In this case, three. The first is that while Israel's GDP is impressively high, it does have an expense or two most rich countries don't have in comparable proportions. Such as the need to maintain a real army, which I hardly need to explain. According to the Economist book of figures, Israel is 4th in the world in the proportion of its GDP spent on defense, at 7.9%. The first three, by the way, are Myanmar, Oman and Saudi Arabia - interesting, isn't it? In real terms, Israel defense expenditure in 2006 was 17th in the world. Such numbers can put a crimp in your ability to lavish support on countries that are less well off.


It's also curious - or not - to note that with standing armies arranged by size, Israel isn't on the list at all as cited by the Economist. Apparently the IDF aims at prowess based on brain over brawn.


The second reason Israel is too stingy with aid is historical. Back in the 1950s, 60s and early 70s, when the Communist and Arab worlds both made great efforts to harm Israel in any international forum (the communists have desisted of late, I notice), Israel really really wanted friends, and so invested large sums and efforts in assisting mostly African countries. In October 1973, as Israel fought against Syrian and Egyptian attacks dozens of these countries severed their relations with Israel, for whatever reason.


Spitting in the eye of your benefactor is not polite, and if the erstwhile benefactor still remembers the affront many years later, you really only have yourself to blame.

Actually, however, it's not even a 35-year-old-stale story. Of the top 20 aid recipients in 2006, only four are not either African countries who severed their relations with Israel in 1973, or countries that don't have such relations today, or both. If you look at the entire list of 68 countries which receive lots of aid, the proportions aren't much better.


Apparently, many of the poorest countries in the world have no qualms about being anti-Israel. A pity, actually.


---------------------


Computers per 100 people:
Israel is at the top of the list, with 122.1 computers for every 100 people. Canada, second place, is way behind with 87.6.


Mobile phones per 100 people: with 122.7, Israelis have even more mobile phones than computers, but in this case rank only 8th. Lithuania is the first.


Though, come to think of it, more and more mobile phones are computers....


taken from : Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations (http://yaacovlozowick.blogspot.com/)

ICC'S WRIT DOESN'T RUN TO GAZA



Meryl Yourish has uncovered a fantastic example the limitations of subordinating politics to international law. Apparently the International Criminal Court cannot deal with whatever is happening in Gaza, because Gaza isn't a country or part of one.
taken from :Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations (http://yaacovlozowick.blogspot.com/)

HANIYEH : NO ISRAEL



The Independent today publishes an opinion column by Ismail Haniyeh, the top Hamas man in Gaza.His relation to truth is a bit cavalier, but we didn't expect otherwise. According to the Israeli media this morning, he and his comrades are near to accepting a cease fire that is effectively an admission of defeat, though of course they'll portray it as a historic victory. What I find significant in his column is the long term goal:

Ultimately, the Palestinians are a people struggling for freedom from occupation and the establishment of an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital and the return of refugees to their villages from which they were expelled. Whatever the cost, the continuation of Israel's massacres will neither break our will nor our aspiration for freedom and independence.
Translation to English: No Israel.
Something to keep in mind.
taken from : Yaacov Lozowick's Ruminations (http://yaacovlozowick.blogspot.com/)

Israel Matzav: Oh joy! Obama to cut $1 billion from Israeli loan guarantees#links#links

Israel Matzav: Oh joy! Obama to cut $1 billion from Israeli loan guarantees#links#links

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Israel Matzav: Gaza war ending?#links#links

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Israel Matzav: Another Pallywood video?#links#links#links

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Israel Matzav: Pro-Israel and pro-terror demonstrators face off in Boston's Copley Square#links#links

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Israel Matzav: Another Gaza mansion disappears UPDATE along with its occupant!#links#links

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Israel Matzav: Six wounded, two seriously as Grad hits Be'er Sheva#links#links#links#links

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Israel Matzav: A picture says 1000 words#links#links

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Stop Raping Israel: Parshat Shemot: The Eternal Nation

Stop Raping Israel: Parshat Shemot: The Eternal Nation

THE IDF "JEWISH SPIRIT" HAS RETURNED


Fighters' Jewish Spirit Returns
by IsraelNN Staff


An IDF rabbi shared this personal testimony...I had the privilege this week [the week before the ground offensive into Gaza - ed of accompanying the Golani Brigade's Regiment 12 soldiers.

I am the regiment’s rabbi, in reserves, and I was called up to serve just like the all the rest, to “aid Israel at its time of tribulation.”
As a long-time ba'al-teshuvah [returnee to observant Judais, a rabbi in a yeshiva who usually walks around wearing a jacket and hat, I now had a major change of atmosphere: my black “uniform” became one of dusty dark green, the hubbub of the Torah study hall was replaced by not-so-pleasing army slang, and my wife's delicious food was given up for the “delicacies” of the mess hall, most of which I don’t eat because of one stringency or another.

We spent most of the week in wet tents, with the terrible cold preventing me from sleeping at night. (I apparently wasn’t working as hard as the other soldiers, because they fell asleep the second they hit the pillow.)

My work, as an official of the Army Rabbinate, was to give encouragement and strength to the soldiers, give out Books of Psalms [Tehilli and distribute special prayers for those who go out to battle.


Psalms for All


And what did I discover down there in southern Israel? My brothers! The Golanchiks (Golani Brigade soldiers), about to go out to war, want to hold on to the Rock of Israel! There wasn’t a soldier there who didn’t equip himself with a Tehillim in his pocket or combat vest - but the big surprise we had was when we gave out tzitzit [four-cornered shirt with the required ritual fringes attac. Usually only the yeshiva guys take them, but this time, every soldier there seemed to want one!


“Rabbi, bring me some tzitzit, my whole tent wants.” “Hey, achi [my brothe, take one of these, it’s better than the ceramic vest!” These were the types of calls we kept hearing over and over. Every package of tzizit that we opened was snatched up within seconds.


There was one young fighter who came to the synagogue whose face fell when he heard that there were no tzitzit left. He was totally bereft, until one of the officers who wasn’t going out to battle took off his own tzitzit and gave it to him, saying, “Take it, achi (in the Golani you can’t say something without achi), you need it now more than I do.


”Email readers: Click here to watch video on tzitzit distribution in the IDF organized by Kulanuachim


The Ma'ariv evening prayer of Friday night, Parashat Vayigash, was simply unbelievable. The Rabbinate realized that the synagogue was too small to fit all the hundreds of soldiers, and so it turned the soccer field into an impromptu synagogue, with prayerbooks, Holy Ark, and everything else.


Whoever did not take part in that Kabbalat Shabbat [Sabbath Welcomin service, is like one who never took part in a Kabbalat Shabbat service in his life! Almost the entire Golani Brigade, officers and soldiers, yelling out the Kaddish and Tehillim prayers. If it wasn’t for the uniform I was wearing, I could have almost thought that I was at a Yom Kippur service in one of the large yeshivot!


No Questions Asked


Our loving Father, too, was there, enjoying every minute of His sons gathering around Him. Our Father doesn’t ask, “Where have you been until now? Why do you remember Me just when you go out to war?” He welcomes all His children and embraces them with love.


After the Sabbath meal, held in an atmosphere of a great “high,” we were privileged to be able to hold an Oneg Shabbat for the soldiers. Chief IDF Rabbi Avi Ronsky was with us the whole Sabbath, and he warmed our hearts with stories of the Nation of Israel, on compassion, on brotherly love, and more. We sat outside with cake and sunflower seeds in the cold, but inside our hearts it was warm.

During the Sabbath, we had to travel to the places from where the soldiers would leave for Gaza. We arrived and the soldiers were imbued with combat spirit, getting ready, trying to get in a last cigarette. Many soldiers tried very hard not to smoke that Sabbath, after I explained to them the importance of observing the Sabbath. They would come up to me every five minutes and ask if the Sabbath had ended yet.


We prayed Ma'ariv there, recited Havdalah [the Sabbath-ending blessin over grape juice, a lighter [instead of a cand and an orange [in place of spice. And then it was time to go in. The Regiment Commander gathered everyone for last-minute words of strength, and explained to them about the “corrective experience” we were about to impart to the enemy.


When he finished, the Deputy Commander read aloud the prayer before going out to battle. “Repeat after me,” he ordered, and a whole regiment of hundreds of soldiers yelled out, “Ana Hashem hoshia na! Ana Hashem hatzlicha na! [O G-d, save us! O G-d, grant us success” After the prayer, the Deputy Commander asked me to blow the Shofar, just as thousands of years ago when we conquered the Holy Land.


Perfect Coordination


Though I’ve blown the Shofar in public before, this particular time was something that will remain with me my whole life. And then, as if I and the Israel Air Force were in perfect coordination, the very second that I finished blowing the Shofar, our planes bombed the enemy area, as if it were a signal to begin the ground offensive.


The soldiers lined up in two columns, and as I parted from them with handshakes, I thought to myself, “What a special nation we have! This is how a Jewish army looks as it goes out to war – not with boastful ‘We will win’ stickers, but rather ‘We will win with G-d’s help.’”
No Dispute
I will just end by saying that where I live in Modi'in Illit, we have a clever interpretation of the verse ‘G-d’s voice is powerful’ – the word for power is spelled with the letters kaf and chet, which we say are the initials of kova and chalifa [hat and sui, our usual garb. But as of this week, we now know that they are also the initials of the kumta chuma [brown bere worn by the Golani soldiers. There, too, the voice of G-d is heard – and “lo pligi” (there is no argument between the two, both are right).
translated by Hillel Fendel
taken from : B'NAI ELIM (http://bnaielim.blogspot.com/)

Israel does not need your support

Israel does not need your support

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