Blood on their hands?

I always thought that Ynet was a leftist website. At least that doesn't prevent them laughing at the craziness of the current political situation in Israel.

This could have come straight from Israel Satire Laboratories!

Blood on whose hands?

Avi Rath describes imaginary government session on release of Palestinian murderers

Published: 12.31.07, 00:07 / Israel Opinion

Prime minister: My government colleagues, I asked to hold this urgent session regarding the question of goodwill gestures. Two days have passed since we made the last gesture to our Palestinian friends. I certainly believe that if we are not quick to undertake additional gestures, the moderate factions on the other side would find it difficult to convince their people of the need for peaceful coexistence. I ask that the next list of prisoners to be released be prepared.

Respondent A: Mr. prime minister. The next list includes terrorists with blood on their hands!

Prime minister: I want to clarify this issue of “blood on their hands” once and for all. I’m starting to get sick and tired of those repeated chants of “blood on their hands”. They are all about demagoguery and hypocrisy. The precise definition of “blood” in my dictionary is “a red fluid containing tiny particles and providing oxygen and other nutrients to body cells, while removing waste.” And I ask you, my fellow government members, have you seen with your own eyes those tiny particles on the terrorists’ hands? Moreover, I checked in the dictionary the exact meaning of the word “hand”. The definition is very precise on the one hand, but certainly leaves room for interpretation on the other hand. According to the dictionary, “hand” means “any one of the two upper limbs of a person.” And I ask, what does “upper” mean exactly? Upper compared to what? What is this arrogance? And on top of that, you keep on challenging me with that slogan: Blood on their hands – and I ask: what do you mean by “on”? And what if the blood is only found on the fingertips? Or at the side of the arm?

Respondent B: Mr. prime minister. It will be difficult to face the public and explain to it morally and legally why we intend to release murders who did not even express remorse!

Prime minister: I’m surprised at you, my fellow ministers, over your basic lack of understanding in matters of Hebrew and morality. After all, “remorse” in Hebrew refers to a “feeling of regret over an act that was committed or decision that was taken.” Friends, we are talking about feelings here. And how can we demand freedom fighters to have any feelings? What is this arrogance? Are we prophets who can know when the feeling of regret will emerge, and when it will die down? And what is this talk about “difficult” and “public”? Who is this “public”? A bunch on stubborn teachers? A handful of greedy professors? Students facing strike? They are the ones who will determine what “blood” and what “hands” means?

Respondent C: With all due respect, sir. In the framework of the government culture we committed ourselves to, you pledged not to release despicable murderers.

Prime minister: Come on, dear friends. I regret to see that the nuances of our language are not clear to you. After all, a pledge is defined as a “promise to do something. A certainty”. And I ask you, is there anything certain around here? I have no intention to take back the words I said, and I have nothing to say about my original intentions. I ask that the list be brought to me.

Respondent D: Sir, how would we be able to direct our stare into the eyes of bereaved families whose loved ones were murdered by those killers?

Prime minister: My colleagues, what’s a stare exactly? After all, a stare is a “gaze, an intent look.” And if so, why do we need to direct anything here? Is there anyone lost here who needs directions? Friends, this session is over.

The statement to the press shall be as follows: “The government of Israel has decided to free from prison innocent human beings who as a result of their difficult childhood and realities of occupation saw tiny particles appear at the side of their upper limbs. We shall do so as a goodwill gesture aimed at boosting peace, tolerance, and humanism.”

Phones are sooo 1975!

I sometimes wonder whether the current Israeli leadership understands what is going on. Perhaps they just don't see things properly. Or hear. Or think...

It seems that the government is out of touch with their electorate, world Jewish opinion, and current Arab and Palestinian thinking.

Perhaps they got their wires crossed.

This is a transcript of the conversation between President Gerald Ford and President Anwar Sadat just after the 'first' peace talks between Israel and Egypt.

After you have read it, go back and imagine it is Olmert phoning Abbas. Instead of all the politeness ("we would love to have you and your family to visit in the fall!") imagine Olmert is 'negotiating' in the only way he knows how - by offering more and more pieces of Israel with every line. (and of course, the last line is not "I'll write you a letter", but "I'll turn off the lights" when everyone has left the country).

Apparently this is true. It must be - I read it on the Jerusalem Post website!

Delighted at his success, the American president, Gerald Ford, immediately phoned Rabin in Jerusalem to express his congratulations. It was a four-minute call of unexceptional platitudes. He then telephoned Sadat in Alexandria.

What follows is the verbatim record of that call, courtesy of the Presidential Papers of Gerald Ford:

FORD: Hello. President Sadat?

SADAT: Hello. This is President Sadat.

FORD: How are you this morning? I wanted to call you and congratulate you on the great role that you played in the negotiations that have culminated in this agreement.

SADAT: Hello? [Inaudible]

FORD: Unfortunately, I don't hear you too well, Mr. President. I hope that my conversation is coming through more clearly. Let me express most emphatically on behalf of my government the appreciation for your statesmanship, despite adversity and some criticism, the spirit in which you have approached the need for an agreement. I am most grateful for the leadership that you have given, and look forward to continuing the work with you…

SADAT: Hello?

FORD: Hello. Can you hear me, Mr. President?

SADAT: Hello?

FORD: I am asking, can you hear me, Mr. President?

SADAT: This is President Sadat.

FORD: I am asking, can you hear me, Mr. President?

SADAT: Not very well.

FORD: I know that you and I recognize that stagnation and stalemate in the Middle East would have been potentially disastrous, and your leadership in working with secretary Kissinger and with the Israelis, all of us are most grateful for. And as we continue to work together, personally, as well as government-to-government…

SADAT: Hello? This is President Sadat speaking.

FORD: Yes, I can hear you, Mr. President. I hope you can hear me, Mr. President.

SADAT: President Ford? Hello.

FORD: I don't hear you too well, Mr. President.

SADAT: Is that President Ford speaking?

FORD: Yes, this is President Ford.

SADAT: Go ahead, please.

FORD: The connection, unfortunately, is not too good for me to hear your comments, Mr. President. Let me say, if I might, despite the difficulties, that Mrs. Ford and I hope that Mrs. Sadat and you and your children will visit the United States some time this fall. Secretary Kissinger has told me of the very warm hospitality that you have extended to him and Mrs. Kissinger, and we look forward to reciprocating when you come to the United States in the fall of 1975.

SADAT: Hello?

FORD: I regret that I can't hear you. The connection is very bad. I hope you can hear me and my comments from the United States. Mr. President, I understand that Secretary Kissinger is coming to Alexandria to personally deliver the documents for your initialing, and I have asked Henry to extend to you on that occasion the gratitude…

SADAT: Hello?

FORD: Hello, Mr. President.

SADAT: Hello, Mr. President.

FORD: I can hear you better now.

SADAT: Mr. President, I hope you and your family are well.

FORD: I am feeling very well, Mr. President, and I hope you are, too.

SADAT: I want to thank you for your personal message [Inaudible].

FORD: I, unfortunately, could not hear as well as I would like the last comments you made. The connection from here is not, apparently, as good as I hope you have there, but…

SADAT: I hear you quite well.

FORD: The efforts of Secretary Kissinger and myself, we feel, were completely worth what we have done, but our efforts could not have been successful without your leadership and statesmanship.

SADAT: Thank you, Mr. President, very much.

FORD: We will see you soon, I hope.

SADAT: We are looking forward to coming, with pleasure, and convey my good wishes to your family.

FORD: And my best to yours, sir.

SADAT: Thank you very much.

FORD: I would just wish to add…

SADAT: Hello?

FORD: Hello? [Inaudible].

SADAT: Hello! Hello!

FORD: I shall write you a letter.

SADAT: Hello.

At this point the line went dead.

Teshuva for Disengagement?

There are at least three components to true repentance; regret about the past, to stop sinning in the present, and to resolve never to do it again in the future.

I wonder to what extent Ben Eliezer's statements here represent the national feeling. Perhaps Israel is beginning to do teshuva for the enormous damage and harm that was (and is being) done to thousands of innocent people (who lived in Gush Katif, Sederot or anywhere nearby).

Of course, real teshuva would also involve helping those who were thrown out of their homes and are still homeless/ unemployed etc. It would also mean protecting those who are currently being bombed from Gaza. But at least a verbal confession is a beginning.

The real question is whether this will lead to changed policies from the government for the future, and whether it will save us from Annapolis.

Since the only thing we can do is teshuva, let us hope that G-d will help the people of Israel to do the right thing.

The disengagement from Gaza "was a mistake" National Infrastructure Minister Binyamin Ben Eliezer told Non-Stop Radio (Radio Lelo Hafsaka) on Thursday.

"I admit and confess," Ben Eliezer said, "I was with those who strongly supported [former prime minister] Ariel Sharon, and today I say with my head held high: We erred, we made a very big mistake."

According to Ben Eliezer, a move such as the Gaza pullout can only be successful when the territory one leaves is "handed over to responsible hands and anchored in agreements and international guarantees. Here we have a precedent - a territory we left turns into a base for terror - period."

Regarding the ongoing Kassam rocket fire at Israel from the Gaza Strip, Ben Eliezer said there is no escaping the need to act and to respond to the barrages.

When asked about potential harm to the Palestinian population in Gaza that would likely result from an Israeli military response, the Infrastructure Minister said attempts to prevent harm to civilians are futile in light of the current situation.

"Israel must respond, what else?"

Ben Eliezer continued: "Israel continues to say 'I bind myself to ethical obligations,' that no other country in the world binds itself to.

"There is a contradiction here between two disciplines," he said. "One nation is prepared to commit suicide and sees it as a mitzvah and an honor, and another wants to spare every ounce of blood."

Ben Eliezer's comments came Thursday morning as three Kassam rockets landed in Israeli territory. Two of the rockets landed in open fields near the southern Israeli city of Ashkelon - one near a strategic installation. No one was wounded and there was no damage to property.

Emergency Campaign to Save Jerusalem

I'm posting this to show my solidarity with yidwithlid, Jerusalem and the The United Coalition for Jerusalem.

I believe that to show the world, ourselves and G-d how many people care about Jerusalem and don't want it destroyed, will be a kiddush Hashem, and will help us focus in our prayers and efforts to get closer to G-d.

HOWEVER, I also believe that G-d is in control. To believe for a moment that Olmert has any kind of authority or power, is to deny that "G-d's eyes are there from the beginning of the year until the end of the year". If G-d is threatening to take Israel away from the Jews, it is not because of Olmert, Barak, Peres or anyone else, but because of us and our actions. The best actions we can take to support Jerusalem are teshuva, prayer, tzedaka (and of course coming here to visit, live etc.).

To quote the Mishna at the end of Sotah: When the world goes crazy and everything is the opposite of what it should be - "Who can we rely on? On our Father in Heaven"

Here is the post. It comes with the following warning: Don't mistake a website or a donation or a political group for G-d.


Emergency Campaign to Save Israel !

“If I Forget Thee O Jerusalem”

By capitulating to foreign interests and to the tiny but powerful anti-Zionist Left in Israel, the government is shattering the social contract that is the source of its right to govern. By violating the foundational principles and norms of the Jewish State, this government has delegitimized itself.

At the “Munich Conference” in Annapolis, the prime minister intends:

-To establish an Arab terrorist state to be called Palestine;

-To divide Jerusalem and give the Temple Mount to the Muslims;

-To cede all of Judea and Samaria;

-To give the enemy control of the mountain ridge overlooking “little Israel,” placing all the large population centers within range of Katusha rockets;

-To expel hundreds of thousands of Jews from their homes and to destroy their communities.

THEY MUST BE STOPPED.

This is not an “Israeli” issue; it is a Jewish issue.
Jerusalem is the birthright of every Jew.

Jerusalem was the capital of the Jewish People for 3,000 years.

By their failure to assert Jewish rights in our city and our holy sites, Israeli governments have set the stage for the ongoing destruction of our 3000 year old heritage. This government has forsaken the State of Israel’s duty to protect our Jewish birthright. If successful, they will sever the Jewish People’s ties to their history, land, and heritage. They will, in effect, deny the very basis of the right of a Jewish State to exist in the Land of Israel.

To divide Jerusalem is to commit national suicide.

To thwart this threat, we have established a coalition dedicated to saving Jerusalem and the Eretz Israel, the United Coalition for Jerusalem, encompassing organizations and groups in countries all over the world. Uniting us is the belief in the centrality of Jerusalem for Jews and Christians alike.

The Israeli wing of the coalition is composed of a long and growing list of extra-parliamentary organizations, Members of Knesset, military leaders, activists, media personalities and, of course, religious leaders. The hallmark of this effort is our inclusiveness. The members come from a wide spectrum of Israeli society: any group or individual opposed to the division of Jerusalem is invited to join.

Short Terms Goals:

To isolate Olmert and his government, and to expose the fact that they are acting against the will of the people and without their support.

To send out a clear and resounding message to the world that Jerusalem belongs to the Jews, now and forever.

To make it clear to Olmert that his government will fall if he proceeds as planned.

Stage One: Building a coalition of supporters.

We aim to build as broad a coalition as possible. Everyone who opposes the abandonment of Jerusalem and the Temple Mount is welcome.

Stage Two: Gathering supporters.

We envision the active participation of representatives from a wide spectrum of Israeli society, the Jewish world, and Evangelical Christians in conveying the campaign’s message.

The different organizations will operate under the United Coalition for Jerusalem, but will undertake the tasks that they do best. Lobbying the Knesset and Congress, mobilizing Evangelical Christian support, education and public relations in Israel and among world Jewry, and obtaining international support are of utmost importance.

The minimum required budget will be $1 million and will include dozens of pinpoint campaigns.

Stage Three: Arousing public outrage against the government.

“If I Forget Thee O Jerusalem…” is a non-sectarian, inclusive campaign.

Given a Knesset whose prime motivation is to cling to their seats, our immediate goal is to threaten the stability of the government coalition by arousing a level of public anger and unrest that can’t be ignored. This shall be achieved by worldwide pressure on PM Olmert and his government.

We will organize a massive demonstrations in Israel and in the USA as a show of strength demonstrating a readiness to do whatever it takes to defend Jerusalem.
Our activities will intensify, moving into non-violent civil disobedience, until the government backs down.

This national disaster, which will place Israel’s continued existence in jeopardy, is being orchestrated by a self-serving and corrupt political clique bent on trading the nation’s most sacred and vital interests for a reprieve from their legal problems.

We, therefore, declare that:

We do not recognize the government’s right to cede the Land of the Bible and to blithely discard the Jewish People’s unique heritage of thousands of years. Nor do we recognize its attempt to reverse the Biblical prophecies of return to Zion that were fulfilled in our era at such tremendous human cost.

We do not recognize the right of the government to tear our land into pieces, to destroy cities, towns, and communities, to make hundreds of thousands of Jews into homeless refugees and to steal their property, as was done to the loyal citizens of Gush Katif.

We do not recognize the authority of the government to use the state as a tool to deny our right to the Land of Zion and to nullify the Zionism that built the state on the strength of 2,000 years of Jewish yearning for Zion.

We do not recognize the government’s right to give our homeland to a fake people to establish a fake state.

When a government becomes a cancer, destroying all that it is charged with protecting, the people must cease obeying its suicidal decrees and oppose the destruction.

The Jewish People in Israel and throughout the world will not be bound by the criminal concessions made by this government: it severs any and all connection with its immoral acts.

The Jewish People in Israel and abroad will do whatever it takes to save the nation and land of Israel from its degenerate leaders.

We truly believe that the tremendous power embodied in shivat tzion, the return of the Jewish people to their homeland, is dormant but not dead. A tremendous battle lies ahead, but

“Let us ascend and we shall gain possession of it, for we can surely do it!” (Numbers 13; 30)

We can’t do this alone. We Need Your Help! -

Donations

Make checks out to the Central Fund of Israel, Re: L’Eretz Yisrael HaShleima.

Mail checks to:

Central Fund of Israel.
c/o Marcus Brothers Textiles
980 6th Ave
New York NY 10018
Tax ID number: 13-2992985
Telephone numbers:
US: Jeff (212)519-0207
Israel: Jay Marcus: 054-699 8155
Tsafrir Ronen - (Israel coordinator) - 972-52-235 8440

Minister of Defense

Or perhaps more precisely - Minister of Defending his own political future.

Ehud Barak stopped the military from carrying out a security operation against terrorists because it won't look good when Israel goes to Annapolis for peace talks.

Clearly the terrorists building the bombs and planning the attacks on civilians are in favour of peace. Were Israel to try and defend herself by removing the threats that would be counter to the 'peace' plan.

I think the Minister of Defense should rename himself 'Minister of Sitting on the Fence - and looking out for his political future, even at the expense of the defense of the State of Israel'

A military operation planned in the Balata refugee camp in Nablus was called off by Defense Minister Ehud Barak, Ynet has learned.

The operation is believed to have been cancelled in light of the Palestinian Authority's security forces taking control of the West Bank city, the upcoming US-sponsored peace conference and Israel's desire to prevent disagreements which may lead to grave results on the backdrop of Barak's frequent meetings with Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad, and US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice's visits to the region.

The planned operation was to include a large amount of forces, including reserve forces, and was aimed at locating terror activists and weapons.

Beilin 'Jewish'

After much soul searching and political pressure, Israel has decided not to cut off electricity to Gaza in response to kassam attacks. Yet again Israel's attempt to thwart the peace process didn't work (Or as the BBC would say 'Attacks won't get in the way of the peace process).

The idea of supplying the enemy with electricity to power their bomb factories reminds me of a piece from Tomer Devorah, which I hope to blog about tomorrow (if I am awake enough).

Another interesting quote from Yossi Beilin, who claims that cutting off the electricity would have been "un-Jewish". From the Jerusalem Post

In response, Meretz Chairman Yossi Beilin claimed that cutting off electricity and fuel was not the best way to halt rocket attacks from the Strip.

"Former prime minister Ariel Sharon's biggest mistake was to allow Hamas participation in the Palestinian elections. We must arrive - via indirect means - at a cease-fire agreement with Hamas," he said. "They approached us, but we weren't interested."

"Cutting off electricity and water is an inhuman and un-Jewish act," he added.

So, Mr Beilin, this is called 'un-Jewish' huh? Well, I went online to see what Mr Beilin does consider to be Jewish.

(which is important to know, since Jewish education is one of his top priorities. Every Jew a chance to learn about their Jewish heritage:

... Another question is what causes should we dedicate Jewish resources to? I think that we should dedicate them to Jewish education and to visits of young Jews to Israel. Without Jewish education and with no Jewish culture, there will be no Jewish people, neither religious nor secular. Our roots and history are what unite us, Jews who are not familiar with their roots, will not stay Jewish

Of course intermarriage is an important part of his Judaism (not to mention other issurei biah)

As Minister of Justice, Yossi Beilin prepared a bill for a Domestic Partnership ("Couplehood") Registration. According to the bill, every man and woman who wishes so, may register as a couple. This status will serve as an alternative to religious marriage, yet without amounting to a civil marriage. In particular, it will enable groups who are at present prevented from getting married according to religious law enforced in Israel, to be recognized as a couple. These groups include: Mamzerim, Agunot, Inter-Religious Marriage.

Secular conversion? (After all, why should religion be decided only by those religious people!)

Another question is what causes should we dedicate Jewish resources to? I think that we should dedicate them to Jewish education and to visits of young Jews to Israel. Without Jewish education and with no Jewish culture, there will be no Jewish people, neither religious nor secular. Our roots and history are what unite us, Jews who are not familiar with their roots, will not stay Jewish

or to put it another way, Judaism is really like a country club:

We must give these people, those who wish to be identified as Jews, the right to join the Jewish people on the basis of their own self-definition. I envision a situation where a non-Jew - who does not claim membership in another religion - turns to the local Jewish community and asks to be registered as a community member. The community would ask for references from two Jewish community members, as is customary upon joining certain movements or clubs.

Cremation - another 'Jewish' idea for Beilin

Yossi Beilin, head of the liberal Meretz party revealed yesterday his body is to be cremated, as requested in his will.

He accused Shas of "driving Israel towards dark days in which citizens will not even be allowed to choose what happens to their corpses when they die."

So, to summarise, stopping the missiles and protecting Israeli citizens is "un-Jewish". But intermarriage, secular conversion and cremation are all 'Jewish' (at least in his 'country club' version of the term'). In that case I'm going to have to start adding a new bracha in the morning, thanking G-d for not making me 'Jewish' according to Beilin.

I suppose the only good thing that can be said about him is at least he isn't a member of Neturei Karta.

All quotes from Beilins' website: www.beilin.org.il except for the last one which is from the Scotsman newspaper

Alan Johnston's answers

Alan Johnston is a BBC reporter who was held hostage in Gaza for 114 days. On the BBC website he answers readers questions in (what seems to me) quite a fair, honest and evenhanded way.

Of course his kidnapping led him to a higher opinion of Palestinians in general (it was only the hostage takers themselves who weren't very nice, and some of them were almost embarrassed about it), and he sees a lot of good in the Palestinian people (which is reasonable, because there is). He also thinks that the Jewish claim to Israel is purely a religious one, and seems to ignore history, international resolutions and the persecution that ultimately led to the State.

But he has quotes like this, which IMHO show a better understanding of the conflict, and the likelihood of peace, than many of our politicians seem to have (and may I take this opportunity to wish our Prime Minister a Refuah Shleima - but couldn't you at least have used it as an excuse to avoid Annapolis?).

Q: How has your experience shaped your views on the Palestinian problem? Do you think there is a solution?
John Craig, Glasgow

For a century or more, this has been a dispute over the control of the narrow strip of land that stretches from the River Jordan to the Mediterranean Sea. If the Israelis were to withdraw from every inch of occupied East Jerusalem, the West Bank and Gaza, the Palestinians would be left with about 22% percent of that land. The Israelis would have 78% percent.

Every time you see an American president sit down with the two sides to talk peace, the question is largely about how much of that 22% the Palestinians should be allowed to have - and under what conditions.

I tend to feel that the Israelis will never really give enough - or be forced by their American friends to give enough. And for at least some angry young Palestinians, 22% could never be enough. They would want to fight on for much more.

I think that they would be hard to rein in, and in the poverty, despair and oppression of the occupation, the ranks of the radicals are only likely to grow.

Set against that, most people on both sides do want an end to the conflict - a settlement that might allow their children to live in peace and prosper. So, perhaps there is hope - "God willing", as they say in Palestine.

Read the full piece on the BBC website

Amnesty Interntational DOESN'T condemn Israel

Mashiach must definitely be on the way. A report from Amnesty International which accuses the Palestinians (both the good ones and the bad ones) of human rights violations! And even the BBC manages to write 8 paragraphs before it mentions that everything is Israel's fault.

It is interesting to see that both the BBC and Amnesty are putting this report out just before Israel sit down with their 'moderate' peace partner to give away the coutry. Apparently even the 'moderates' are not all that nice really.

If we have too much more reporting like this I'll know that they have all done teshuvah. Or I'll be sure that Mashiach is here. (Or perhaps, since the Israeli politicians are clearly unable to say anything bad against our 'peace partners' or anything good about Israel, G-d has found other shelichim who can do it instead).

Make sure you are sitting down when you read this.

Feud 'hurting Palestinian rights'

Fighting between the two main factions in the Palestinian territories is fuelling human rights abuses, a leading human rights NGO reports.

Amnesty International says illegal detentions and torture have become commonplace in both Hamas-controlled Gaza and Fatah's West Bank stronghold.

It notes that the situation in Gaza has deteriorated sharply since June when Hamas seized control by force.

The UK-based group is calling for an independent investigation.

According to Amnesty, arbitrary detentions and the torture of opposition supporters have become widespread in the Gaza Strip where there have also been attacks on demonstrators and journalists covering such incidents.

But the report says human rights abuses are being committed in the West Bank too, by government security forces under the control of President Mahmoud Abbas against Hamas supporters.

Hundreds of Hamas sympathisers have been arrested and reports of ill-treatment and torture are frequent but much less publicised than Hamas violations, Amnesty notes.

'Dire effect'

"The leaders of both the PA [Palestinian Authority] and Hamas must take immediate steps to break the cycle of impunity that continues to fuel abuses, including arbitrary detentions, abductions, torture and ill-treatment by their forces," said Malcolm Smart, Amnesty's Middle East programme director.

"The ongoing factional struggle between Fatah and Hamas is having a dire effect on the lives of Palestinians, especially in the Gaza Strip, compounding and exacerbating the human rights and humanitarian crisis caused by Israeli military campaigns and blockades," he added.

Tensions between the two main parties have been high since the beginning of last year when Hamas defeated Fatah in parliamentary elections.

Those tensions often spilled over into violence and have led to the deaths of hundreds of people.

The distance between the sides has grown such that there is now little political dialogue between them, the BBC's Aleem Maqbool reports from Ramallah in the West Bank.

Amnesty's report calls on the international community to cease the sale of weapons to both factions until guarantees can be secured that they will not be used to violate human rights.

Older and Wiser

Who said you can't teach an old dog new tricks? They don't come much older than President Shimon Peres, but yesterday, while speaking to the Austrian chancellor he finally admitted (or figured out) something that most of us have known for a very long time - Hamas wants to destroy Israel!

(Do you think he drank too much coffee? Or have they given him those 'smart pills'?)

He almost admitted that pulling out of Gaza was a mistake! I wonder how long it will take him to see that Oslo isn't doing too well at the moment either (how does that Nobel prize look on the mantlepiece now?)

Everything he has been done and tried to do for the past several decades (at least) turns out to have been a mistake. (I hope I never have to come to a realisation like that!) All this time he thought the Palestinians were our friends!

Perhaps he is in the process of doing teshuva (it is Elul, even for the president). Perhaps he has finally heard the screams of the kids in Sderot!

Let us hope (and pray) that with this realisation about Palestinian - Israel relations he will also actually direct the government to do something, and to make Israel a safer and even better place to live.


Hamas wants to destroy Israel, says Peres

"We had a rough day in Sderot. Seven rockets fell and almost killed our children. It's an intolerable situation and there is one address for it – Hamas. There is a limit to how much Israel is willing to tolerate," President Shimon Peres told Austrian Chancellor Alfred Gusenbauer on Monday.

In thier meeting in Jerusalem, the president told the chancellor, "Israel left Gaza completely. There is not one Israeli citizen in its territory. Today I ask myself why? Why is Hamas shooting? What is its goal?

"There is only one answer. Hamas is a religious-fanatic organization that does not want a Palestinian state for its people, but wants to impose the dangerous radical religious hegemony that is taking over the entire Middle East and gives a green light to kill innocent people in its name."

Peres continued to condemn Hamas' actions which he said harmed both the Palestinian and Israeli people. "Hamas has one goal," he said, "to destroy the State of Israel. This is a danger to the entire free world. There is a limit to how much Israel is willing to tolerate."

Good Old Auntie

In America they have the ADL. In Britain they have the BBC. (Those 3 letter initials are catchy).

Impartial as always, the Beeb reports on wanton destruction of artifacts on (so called?) Temple Mount.

Apart from the headline (priceless) I particularly like such phrases as:
"Muslim authorities at al-Aqsa mosque, also venerated by Jews as the Temple Mount" (also? who was here first buddy!),
"Jerusalem's holiest religious shrine" (not Judaism's holiest shrine),
"Mosque officials insist it is urgent infrastructure work doing no damage" (why would you think that a bulldozer is doing damage? Ask Arthur Dent!),
"the remains of King Solomon's temple" (no current religious significance then),
"We regret some Israeli groups try to use archaeology to achieve political ends" (because clearly archaeology is always motivated by politics, not history),
"it is a living religious site in an occupied land" (which is why they play football up there and have family picnics (and occasionally throw rocks down on those praying at the kotel) - a living religious site!)

I suppose history has no more significance for the readership of the BBC (since the end of the Raj, and the 'pink bits'), so archeology is just another political tool, and the Jews (as usual) are making trouble again.

Remind me again why Moshe Dayan gave the Wakf control of the site in 1967?!

(And why is this not reported at all on the Israeli news sites?)

Israeli anger over holy site work

A group of Israeli archaeologists is protesting about fresh excavations at Jerusalem's holiest religious shrine, saying it threatens priceless relics.

Muslim authorities at al-Aqsa mosque, also venerated by Jews as the Temple Mount, are digging a 150-metre trench for water pipes and electricity cables.

Israeli critics say the work is causing irreparable damage, indiscriminately piling up earth and carved stones.

Mosque officials insist it is urgent infrastructure work doing no damage.

The Aqsa Mosque/Temple Mount compound is the Middle East's most sensitive disputed religious site.

Competing claims have been a catalyst for violence in the recent past and determining its fate lies at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian dispute.

Delicate

Jewish tradition reveres the area as the remains of King Solomon's temple, while Muslim tradition has it as the location of the Prophet Muhammad's ascent into heaven.

With the rest of east Jerusalem the shrine was occupied by Israel in the 1967 war. Now the compound is run by the Muslim Waqf authorities under Israeli security control.

The Waqf resumed working this week, using a mechanical digger on a metre-deep trench, cutting through the subsoil and piling it up beside the trench.

Israeli archaeologists say such material should be carefully sifted and documented, as it would be even at sites of far less significance than this most sensitive cultural and religious location.

Gabriel Barkai of the Committee Against the Destruction of Antiquities on the Temple Mount calls it an act of barbarism.

"They are digging in the most crucial and delicate point of the Temple Mount - of the whole country," the Bar-Ilan University senior lecturer told the BBC.

"They should be using a toothbrush, not a bulldozer."

Living shrine

Dr Barkai identifies the area currently under excavation as the outer courts of the Second Temple, built by Herod the Great in the First Century BC.

He maintains it is where the best preservation of antiquities was anticipated, since other parts of the compound are built on exposed bedrock.

He accuses the Islamic authorities of wanting to "show who is the boss" by destroying Jewish remains in al-Aqsa mosque.

He also lambastes the Israeli Antiquities Authority, meant to supervise any work at archaeological sites, for apparently giving the work legitimacy.

Yusuf Natsheh of the Islamic Waqf dismisses such claims, saying the area has been dug many times and arguing that remains unearthed would be from the 16th or 17th century Ottoman period.

He says the work is urgently needed to maintain the al-Aqsa compound as an important religious institution.

Saturated by history

"We regret some Israeli groups try to use archaeology to achieve political ends," Dr Natsheh told the BBC.

"But their rules of archaeology do not apply to the Haram (compound); it is a living religious site in an occupied land."

The Israeli Antiquities Authority has not commented on the issue. "They filled their mouths with water," as Dr Barkai puts it.

"The earth here is saturated by history. All we can do is alert the world to what is happening and try to stop the next disaster," he says.

As far as Dr Natsheh is concerned the Israeli government has no authority over what is happening, as the Muslim authorities do not recognise its legitimacy in the occupied territory.

"We inform the Israeli police about what we intend to do, and then go ahead, so they have no excuse to prevent us," he says.

Its not easy to convert

Statistics show that it is difficult to convert!!

The latest recommendation from the Imigration Ministry to the Israeli government is speed up the conversion process.

Look at these facts:
300,000 non-Jews living in Israel:
I thought it was twice that number - 1 million people made Aliya from the former Soviet Union, of whom 60% were not Jewish. Where are the other 300,000? (perhaps they left the country already?)
Why did the government not think about this when it encouraged so many non Jews to move to Israel? Did they not think that Israel was a Jewish country fifteen years ago? The truth is that the Aliya from FSU was designed to counter the demographic imbalance with both the Arabs and the religious Jews. The government was terrified of having either an Arab majority or a religious majority in the country. The cunning plan was to bring in non Jews (the vast majority of whom had no intention or desire to become Jewish). A little bit like the Old Lady who swallowed the fly! The plan worked. Now what?


6000 begin a conversion process each year, but only a third complete it:
Should we blame red tape and bureaucracy? Or perhaps the vast majority (98%) don't want to be Jewish?
Perhaps two thirds don't complete the process because they are not yet ready to become Jewish, or because they were only converting for ulterior motives, and didn't follow through with the conversion?

Some are forced to wait 3 months for their certificate! Three months! It takes longer than that to get a drivers' license or a tax rebate. Doesn't seem like a long tme to me.

The statistics don't say how many of those converts continue to lead a Jewish life after conversion. Apparently that should not be an important factor in decisions about conversion.

And why does the government care that more people should convert? “The conversion of non-Jews is both a national and strategic mission, and is vital for the future of the State of Israel." Which word is missing from this sentence? 'religious/Jewish'. Conversion is national and strategic, but not about Judaism any more.

Why don't they make a new kind of conversion where people have to learn and practice 'national and strategic' topics, and we'll call them 'Israeli' instead of Jewish?

I am very much in favour of helping people who sincerely wish to become Jewish, and who are planning on remaining Jewish and observant after they receive their conversion certificate. I have tremendous respect for people who change their lives and their futures by becoming Jewish. And there are systems in place for such people. They are the 2000 who convert each year.

But the State of Israel cannot make people 'national and strategic' Jews by creating a new department. That won't maintain the Jewish character of the country.

And why can't they just remain as non Jews and be good B'nei Noach? Since biblical times Israel has had a large non Jewish segment of society who supported the Israelites and helped them economically. Why should we force people to become Jewish?

‘Converting non-Jews vital for Israel’s future’

Immigration and Absorption Ministry recommends establishment of a new conversion authority was recommended by the Immigration and Absorption Ministry as the solution to help thousands of immigrants convert to Judaism each year.

The ministry made its recommendation in a report sent to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert Monday.

The recommendations included adding more rabbinical judges to conversion courts, removing bureaucratic obstructions, and introducing a special committee headed by the Sephardic Chief Rabbi Shlomo Amar, to deal with halachic issues.

Presently, Israel is home to about 300,000 immigrants who arrived in the country under the Law of Return, but are not defined as Jews according to the halacha. Each year, about 6,000 of these immigrants undergo the conversion process, but only a third of them succeed in completing it.

The ministry’s report revealed that applicants are forced to deal with many different bodies in the conversion process, all of whom have different administrative policies. Also, applicants who eventually make it to the end of the conversion process (30%-50% drop out during the preparation stage) are forced to wait over three months before receiving their conversion certificate.

According to a poll by the Immigration and Absorption Ministry, the majority of immigrants said an easy conversion, along with openness and acceptance towards applicants, could encourage an increase in conversion.

“The conversion of non-Jews is both a national and strategic mission, and is vital for the future of the State of Israel. We have to enable citizens who are interested in converting, to fully integrate with the nation and Israeli society,” said Immigration Absorption Minister Jacob Edery.

To those who repent and those who don't

We are about to begin the month of Elul, a time of introspection, repentance and regret. It seems that not only has the government begun the process a wee bit early, but that they are also playing G-d!

Just as we ask G-d to forgive those who repent and those who don't, Ehud Olmert and co. have decided that the amnesty they gave to the terrorists is valid, even if they don't actually renounce violence and terrorism.

Or to put it another way - the terrorists are caught in the act. The govt. checks the lists of names, and sees they have made it to the book of life. So they are off the hook. Terribly sorry old thing for the inconvenience of arresting you. We didn't realise that you have amnesty. Please, have your guns and bullets back, and don't let us stop you in your 'terrorist activities'!!

What!!! Just when things seem as though they can't get any madder, we wake up somewhere over the rainbow to find that there's bats in the bellfry!

THE GOVERNMENT OF ISRAEL INSTRUCTED THE ARMY TO RELEASE TERRORISTS WHO WERE CAUGHT IN THE ACT, WITHOUT CHARGE, BECAUSE THEY HAD SIGNED A FORM RENOUNCING TERRORIST ACTIVITY!

(No, even in capital letters it makes no sense).

I'll leave you to read the article for yourselves. Let me know what you think.

(And let's all hope and pray that G-d is this lenient with us on judgement day)

Israel yesterday captured an Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades member while he was engaging in terror-supporting activity but let him go after it was determined he was on a list of wanted gunmen granted amnesty by Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, WND has learned.

Part of the amnesty deal required the 178 terrorists – all of whom are members of the Brigades, the declared military wing of Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas' Fatah's organization - to sign a document stating they will not engage in terrorist activity and that they would restrict their movements to the city in which they reside for three months.

The Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades took responsibility along with Islamic Jihad for every suicide bombing in Israel the past three years. The amnesty agreement was made as an Israeli gesture to Abbas and to bolster Fatah against Hamas in the West Bank.

The incident in question occurred on Wednesday at 8:30 pm when the IDF stopped what security sources said were four suspicious Palestinians entering the al-Badin checkpoint outside the northern West Bank city of Nablus.

Two Palestinians were immediately let go when it was determined they were civilians, but the two others - known Brigades members - were detained after they were found to be carrying large quantities of bullets security sources said were being smuggled from Jenin to Nablus.

According to security sources, the Brigades members normally reside in Nablus and had left the city and purchased the bullets in Jenin. They were captured upon trying to reenter Nablus. In line with the amnesty agreement, the one military on the list had pledged to restrict his movements and remain in Nablus. The sources said the listed militant told the IDF repeatedly he was on Israel's amnesty list and that arresting him would "blow up" relations with the PA.

After consulting with superiors, the IDF released the Brigades member on the amnesty list but arrested the other gunman.

Asked to comment, the IDF did not deny the incident:"We make our arrests in accordance with the directives of the political echelon and the different agreements with the PA," said an IDF spokesperson.

An Israeli security official told WND this was not the first time Brigades members granted amnesty violated their agreement to refrain from terrorism. He said the military was aware of one incident last month in which a Brigades gunman on the list shot at Israeli forces.

"We now have a situation in which a terrorist organization has been given a get-out-of-jail-free card - literally," the official fumed.

According to statements by Palestinian officials and reports by the media, most terrorists turned in their weapons in line with the deal.

A widely circulated AP article this past weekend quoted a senior Palestinian security official stating "all but three Al Aqsa members have surrendered their weapons and sworn off violence, as part of the arrangement."

But calls Monday to the Al Aqsa Martyrs Brigades members who received amnesty yielded a much different story.

Abu Yousuf, a senior leader of the Brigades in Ramallah, told WND most Brigades members turned in one of several pieces of weaponry they possess.

He said most Brigades members have two to three guns, including one to two personal weapons and one assault rifle issued by the PA, since the majority of Brigades members are also members of Fatah's security forces.

"It's true Brigades members turned in one of their weapons as a symbolic act, but they kept the others," he said.

Reprinted with permission of WorldNetDaily

Gaza is Israel's fault cartoons

I should really have titled this post 'proud to be a New Zealander', but some of you may have thought I was being serious.

Let me re-phrase that. I am proud to be a New Zealander (or kiwi as we like to call ourselves) but when I see how anti-Semitic - oops! I mean anti-Israel the media there is, I'm not sure any more.

Look at these cartoons from different Arab countries:







The first one is from Qatar, the second from Bahrain and the third from New Zealand.

Whoops! New Zealand isn't an Arab country. How did that one get in the list. Yet it seems that Mike Moreu is inspired by the Arab media for his ideas and cartoons.
It is the cartoon of the day on Stuff (which is NZs online newspaper). It is not a particularly funny or witty idea, but all three papers seem to view what is going on in Gaza as some sporting event set up by the Israelis to kill Palestinians. Clearly it cannot be the fault of the Palestinians!

Thanks to YID With LID for finding the cartoons from the Arab media.

have a nice day (I love how Americans say that even when they mean 'I have a migraine and an ingrown toenail. Your breath smells and you are driving me crazy for no good reason, and if I had a gun I would seriously consider shooting you right not, but since I don't - 'Have a nice day!')

Blame Israel for everything

It never takes long for the world to blame Israel for whatever is wrong in the world. This time, of course, it is Gaza. Clearly Israel is responsible for the situation (actually, bizarrely, the critics of the world are right, but not in the way they had intended. If Israel had not negotiated with the PLO and given them control, or withdrawn from Gush Katif, or armed Fatah, Hamas would never have come to power and the situation in Gaza would be very different today - but even Olmert hasn't realised that yet). Abbas was probably the first to accuse Israel without even blaming them for anything when he said that "‘Hamas is drunk with power, acting like Israel!"

Jeopundit found an article in the Guardian that is more explicit in blaming both Israel and the USA for what is going on now.

But cudos to him for also finding an article on the Wall Street Journal which presents a much more (in my opinion) honest assesment. It includes the following information, showing why the world has encouraged the use of terror amongst the Palestinian leadership and rank and file:

In 1972 Palestinian terrorists murdered Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics. Yet only two years later Yasser Arafat addressed the U.N.'s General Assembly--the first non-government official so honored. In 1970 Arafat attempted to overthrow Jordan's King Hussein and tried to do the same a few years later in Lebanon. Yet in 1980, the European Community, in its Venice Declaration, recognized Arafat's Palestine Liberation Organization as a legitimate negotiating partner.

In 1973, the National Security Agency recorded Arafat's telephoned instructions to PLO terrorists to murder Cleo Noel, the U.S. ambassador in Sudan, and his deputy George Curtis Moore. Yet in 1993, Arafat was welcomed in the White House for the signing of the Oslo Accords with Israel. That same year, the British National Criminal Intelligence Service reported that the PLO made its money from "extortion, payoffs, illegal arms-dealing, drug trafficking, money laundering and fraud." Yet over the next several years, the Palestinian Authority would become the largest single recipient of foreign aid on a per capita basis.

In 1996, after he had formally renounced terrorism in the Oslo Accords, Arafat told a rally in Gaza that "we are committed to all martyrs who died for the cause of Jerusalem starting with Ahmed Musa until the last martyr Yihye Ayyash"--Musa being the first PLO terrorist to be killed in 1965, and Ayyash, who was killed in 1996, being the Hamas mastermind of a series of suicide bombings in which scores of Israeli civilians were killed. Yet the Clinton Administration continued to pretend that Arafat was an ally in the fight against Hamas. In 2000, Arafat rejected an Israeli offer of statehood midwifed by President Clinton and instead initiated the bloody intifada that left 1,000 Israelis and 3,000 Palestinians dead.

In 2005, only months after Arafat's death, Israel dismantled its settlements and withdrew its forces from the Gaza Strip. Palestinians have used the opportunity to intensify their rocket fire at civilian targets within Israel. Last month, Israeli security services arrested two Gazan women, one of them pregnant, who were planning to enter Israel on medical pretexts in order to carry out suicide attacks. Yet the same month, the World Bank issued a report faulting Israel for restricting Palestinian freedom of movement.

Now it appears Hamas has taken control of the Gaza Strip's main road and its border with Egypt, as well as the offices of the so-called Preventive Security Services, traditionally a Fatah stronghold. "They are executing them one by one," a witness told the Associated Press of Hamas's reprisals against the Preventive Security personnel.

We need as many prayers as we can get to work our way out of this hole that we have dug ourselves.

Usually people stop digging at some point, but Olmert would not be one of those kinds of people. The headline today says it all:

PM: New situation an opportunity

Bless!!!

Mazel Tov Peres

Well, the impossible has happened! Shimon Peres has won an election (well, technically he didn't win because the other candidates both pulled out, but he would have won). He is now the president elect of Israel in an honest and open election. In two months he will be 84 years old, and he has just been elected for a 7 year term of office. By the end surely he will be one of the oldest politicians in the world (and who can imagine anything ever happening to him? He seems to be immortal, certainly he is politically eternal). So I was wrong, thinking that he could never win.

On the other hand, Barak won his election as leader of the Labour Party with only a small amount of cheating (and only by Arabs and Druze, so it is probably OK).

Barak received a total of 34,542, while Ayalon got 32,117 of the votes (47.7 percent), while 683 of the party's registered voters abstained from voting. That means the difference between them was 2,425! That is a very small margin of victory. Ayalon was gracious in defeat. Listen to this:

Ayalon praised Barak for his victory and said that he would cooperate with the new chairman. However, he told Israel Radio that irrespective of the result, which he said he accepted, he would submit a complaint to police and to the attorney general over misdemeanors he claimed were witnessed at several polling stations. "Labor is my house and my house must be clean," he said.

The head of a polling station in Shfaram was allegedly caught stuffing dozens of ballots for Barak. In Tira, police came to the polling station after its chairman complained he was attacked by a Barak loyalist. The Ayalon campaign asked to stop the voting in Julis, because people were voting there without identification.

I am beginning to like Ayalon more and more. The truth is that I knew nothing about him before these elections. Now he seems to be an honest person (which is impossible in politics), and even though I don't agree with his views, I can respect someone who respects me. This is what Wikipedia has to say about him:

On 25 June 2003, Ayalon launched, together with Palestinian professor Sari Nusseibeh, a peace initiative called "The People's Voice". The goal of the initiative is to collect as many signatures of Israelis and Palestinians as possible for the peace plan guidelines supporting a two-state solution without the right of return for Palestinian refugees.

Although Ayalon promotes traditional left-wing ideas, he insists he is not a part of the Israeli left and spurns the Israeli peace camp for its hostility toward the Israeli public and especially toward the settlers. Ayalon managed to outrage many left-wing activists when he said that only Ariel Sharon and the Likud could bring peace.

He took part in the "Mate ha-Rov" demonstration in support of the withdrawal from the Gaza Strip and made a very critical speech against the Israeli peace camp. He said:

We, who protest here, did not succeed in sinking through to the majority of the people. The majority is silent and therefore has no influence. I will tell you why the majority is not here. They are not here because we didn't manage to settle in the hearts [Hebrew: להתנחל בלבבות, originally a phrase invented by the settlers] of this true majority, the majority that makes the difference. We didn't manage to talk and perhaps we didn't even want to. We turned the settlers of Yesha into enemies and in an overbearing manner we banished them to the outskirts. We will only succeed when the grief of the evacuees will overcome the joyous cry of the evacuators. We claimed the desire for peace solely as our own. The majority sits at home and is quiet, although it wants out of Gaza the same as we do. The majority doesn't care, and shouldn't care, which person signs the accords to end the [Israeli-Palestinian] conflict. In order to get out of Gaza, the majority of the people must not be silent. [2]

So, (apart from the fact that he teamed up with Peretz in this second round,) the only thing I have against him (and this is definitely tongue in cheek in case you thought I was serious) is that he bears an uncanny resemblance to Riff Raff (aka Richard O'Brian from New Zealand). Can you tell them apart?






Let's hope that somehow his the two victories of the two 'old' leaders will somehow usher in a 'new' era of politics. Unfortunately I don't think Israel is ready for the new just yet though (at least the politicians aren't). And when it goes pear shaped for Barak (probably within the year) I hope Ayalon tries again and does well.

Looking Bad(ly)

Last week we read the Torah portion of the spies. They were punished for bringing back a bad report about the land of Israel. As a result of this report and its acceptance by the people, the Israelites had to wander in the desert for 40 years (corresponding to the 40 days the spies were spying out the land) until that generation had died and the new generation, their children, were finally able to enter the land of Israel.
R’ Chaim Shmuelevitz asks why they were punished for 40 years if the sin was only the speaking and acceptance of the evil report about Israel. In other words, why were the spies punished for doing their job of scouting out the land? And why were the people punished for doing nothing during those 40 days?
R’ Matis Weinberg points out that the Hebrew words for speaking evil, lashon hara, don’t actually means ‘bad language/ tongue’ (that would be ‘lashon ra’ah, since lashon is a feminine word). Rather it means ‘the language of evil’. The real sin of lashon hara is not causing damage to someone else, or offending them, but is more fundamental. It is the sin of seeing the world in a way that everything looks bad. Speaking about the bad things that one sees is just the consequence of viewing the world in this way. R’ Matis also points out that Rambam puts the laws of lashon hara in the book of ‘de’os’, which talks about perfection of character traits, rather than in a section of forbidden speech or damages.
The main prohibition of lashon hara is viewing the world in a certain way, where everything looks bad. This was the sin of the spies – for 40 days they only saw the negative aspects of the land of Israel. All the miracles that G-d did for them while they were there, and all the Divine protection they received, they managed to twist into seeing how bad the land was.
Similarly, the people who were so keen to send the spies were not looking at the positive aspects of Israel. They wanted spies who would seek out the negatives and allow them to remain in the desert, or even return to Egypt, rather than having to fight a war to enter the land. The whole enterprise was therefore doomed from the outset. This is why they were punished for 40 years. Moshe realized that things were going wrong from the beginning, which is why he prayed for Yehoshua that he should be saved from this wicked counsel.
I always wondered how people could view Israel in such a negative light that they were punished with 40 years of exile. Sure, there are some things in Israeli society, mentality or geography that I complain about from time to time, but how could the whole country be viewed so negatively? What about the daily miracles of survival and blessing? What about the homeland for the Jewish people? What about the ingathering of the exiles?
Luckily I have found the answer to my question – from the ostensibly unbiased news service of the BBC (I say ostensibly, because the Arabs in Britain complain that their news service is biased in favor of Israel – bear that in mind as you look at this article!).
Just to clarify – they don’t tell too many outright lies. But they manage to distort the facts to see only the negative side (from the Israeli/ Jewish perspective) of every main area of the modern political situation in Israel.
So, if you have the stomach to read what might have come directly from the words of the spies (and you will need a strong stomach) – here is the summary of the Middle East story, and obstacles to peace, by the BBC:

Obstacles to peace: Moveable frontiers
Obstacles to peace: Refugees
Obstacles to peace: Water
Obstacles to peace: Jerusalem

And for a final stomach wrenching personal account:
Samia Zaru, Palestinian refugee sculptor living in Jordan

Or perhaps you don’t agree with me. If you think these are fair and honest reports please leave your comments at the bottom of the page. And if you think they are seeing the real picture and I am wearing rose colored glasses, please let me know.

(cross posted from wwww.torahlab.org

Aides say 'give him a chance to learn'

Just to add to my previous post - the spin doctors have managed to turn the entire thing on its head. According to YNet:

Meanwhile Olmert aides said the Winograd Commission hinted that the prime minister should be given a chance to learn from his mistake.
"A culture that doesn't allow those who err to keep their posts is not a progressive culture," one aide quoted one of the report's footnotes. "It is likely to lose its most experienced individuals in order to allow people who have not made mistakes to repeat mistakes made by others."

In fact what the commission said was that they were forced to publish the interim report because the Prime Minister and government had failed to learn from their mistakes. They felt he was using the governmental committee as an excuse to not have to learn. But that now means (according to Olmert's aides) that he should be given another chance to learn. Perhaps I was wrong before when I said that a person is led on the path that they choose for themselves, maybe he is being given a chance to learn.
Or perhaps, like Pharaoh, he will not read the writing on the wall, and continue to say 'who is this G-d that I should listen to Him'.

Learning to Learn

I don't normally like discussing, or blogging, about politics, but the release of the Winograd report and the prime minister's immediate response are too good to pass up. Without wishing to discuss the findings and their implications I wanted to look at the learning process, and how that affects us.
The report was clear. It states:

4. This emphasis on learning lessons not only follows from our conception of the role of a public commission. It also follows from our belief that one of Israeli society's greatest sources of strength is its being a free, open and creative. Together with great achievements, the challenges facing it are existential. To cope with them, Israel must be a learning society - a society which examines its achievements and, in particular, its failures, in order to improve its ability to face the future.

5. Initially we hoped that the appointment of the Commission would serve as an incentive to accelerate learning processes in the relevant systems, so that we could devote our time to study all of the materials in depth, and present the public with a comprehensive picture. However, learning processes have been limited. In some ways an opposite, and worrying, process emerged - a process of 'waiting' for the Commission's Report before energetic and determined action was taken to redress the failures that have been revealed.

6. Therefore we decided to publish initially an Interim Report, focusing on the decisions related to the start of the war. We did this in the hope that the relevant bodies would take urgent action to change and correct all the implications.

In other words, the Winograd report was supposed to be an opportunity to learn. They published the interim report because they felt that their commission was hampering learning, rather than encouraging it. The entire purpose of this interim report is to allow for learning. (And remember that this commission was appointed by the Prime Minister as his advisory committee. They have no legal powers and cannot do anything except advise, which in their view means to facilitate learning).

What was the response of the Prime Minister? How will Olmert learn from the Winograd report?

Olmert said, he would work to implement the report's conclusions. He called a special cabinet session for Wednesday to begin the work, at which he plans to announce the creation of a special task to oversee the report's implementation, including both government officials and external experts.

The government's response to a report from a special task force calling on them to learn is ... another governmental task force to help them learn!!!!

A person is allowed to go on the path that they choose for themselves. If someone refuses to learn, they will find many ways to continue to avoid learning.

How often are we given the chance to learn, from our mistakes, from our successes, from other people. What do we do with that opportunity? Do we learn, and take steps to implement the conclusions that we reach, or do we set up another 'task force' allowing us to continue with business as usual and miss the opportunity for growth and personal development.

In my opinion the current Israeli government is not good for very much (like most of the previous ones), but what we can learn is what happens to someone who doesn't want to learn, who has too much vested interest to wish to make any real changes, to see clearly what fools we make of ourselves if we fail to learn while everyone else can see clearly what we should be doing.

Let's try to learn.