JoeSettler

Conflict in Obama's House

2009-07-20T22:36:00.003+03:00

As I mentioned, Ynet is confirming that there conflict in Obama's Utopia.

The report states that there are "professional difference" between Mitchell and Clinton, which would help explain why Clinton has no clue as to Mitchell's itinerary and why Clinton seems to have been cut out of other key developments.

Meanwhile, Elliot Abrams says that Mitchell actually wants to resign - but Obama will only let him do that after he succeeds in getting some sort of settlement freeze. He continues on to make fun of Obama's policy and says that a settlement freeze at this point would backfire on Obama, who would then have to actually get the Arabs to give something in return. But if the freeze fails, He can still blame Israel, but then Mitchell retires in disgrace (or he can't retire at all).

Jerusalem - The Modern City

2009-07-19T10:00:00.002+03:00

One of JoeSettler’s more prolific readers made the astounding statement that Jerusalem isn’t a “modern” city. The arguments she put forward were primarily that Jerusalem closes down for Shabbat and that Jerusalem can be divided.

I’m hard pressed to understand those two reasons.

To begin with, Israel is the Jewish State, and Jerusalem in particular is a Jewish City.

Personally I see no irresolvable conflict between “modernity” and Judaism.

I personally cannot accept the argument that since modernity can demand that the less economically well-off be required by their employers to work 7 days a week – and no consideration should be given to the culturally accepted day of rest - that that is a step forward - because its not.

One of Judaism’s greatest gifts to humanity was the ending of what was effectively slavery of the working class, and the creation of a weekly communal day of contemplation and rest – something all society benefits from.

My definition of modernity cannot include the forced labor of the weaker economic classes.

Second, the attempts to divide Jerusalem are political. Physically, one could divide Manhattan to an East and West side or above 150th street and below it. And let’s take Berlin, another city divided.

So that argument holds no water either.

On the other hand, Jerusalem has free Wifi hotspots throughout its public areas, as well as in its cafes and coffeehouses (and other public venues).

Jerusalem has 4 cellular firms servicing it, and I am hard-pressed to find any blackout areas (except in certain departments of Jerusalem's world class hospitals). I know from experience that’s not true in a modern city like New York.

For that matter, Jerusalem has high speed cellular internet access pretty much anywhere in the city.

The majority of (if not most) homes in Jerusalem have hi-speed internet access.

Jerusalem has Intel and Teva and plenty of other leading global hi-tech firms with major offices and factories in Jerusalem – here because of Jerusalem’s highly-educated work force.

I will admit that Jerusalem’s public transportation system used to be better, but once the light-rail is completed, things should improve.

Jerusalem is multi-cultural. And while it is far from the richest city in Israel, poor does not mean not modern.

And while we don’t have much of a theater district, we do have a museum row.

The Israel, Rockefeller and Bible Lands Museum are archeological museums that are beyond compare when it comes to their archeological showcases and research of the Holy Land, regional and Jewish history.

There are more bookstores per square mile in Jerusalem than perhaps anywhere else in the world.

Unless reading books isn’t considered that modern.

The Hebrew University is a world- class university, where much research that measurably improves the lives of people around the world (including in the US) is done.

And Machon Lev – that is the embodiment of technology meeting Judaism meeting modernity.

Jerusalem will soon even have electric filling stations for our upcoming electric cars.

Jerusalem’s traffic is monitored in real time by live camera feeds all over the city.

Jerusalem has an international airport (that was unfortunately shut down due to terrorism).

And due to its unique geography and legacy infrastructures, Jerusalem has developed modern solutions to difficult problems – not faced by newer and less complex cities.

So sorry, but your argument that Jerusalem isn’t a modern city because basically it’s also a Jewish city just doesn’t hold water.

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Normal Life

2009-07-19T08:03:00.003+03:00

The Israeli government will now start using the term "Normal Life" instead of "Natural Growth" when describing Jewish towns created over the 1949 armistice line.

Which is of course exactly what we have here.

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Will Obama flip-flop and make Mitchell a liar?

2009-07-18T21:36:00.005+03:00

A few months ago Israel radio reported that Obama would announce a big Peace Initiative in July.

That was confirmed by Obama special envoy Mitchell just a few weeks ago in an official briefing.

The far-Leftwing paper Haaretz though says the announcement is imminent.

But since then, Mitchell has canceled ("delayed") his meeting with Netanyahu, not once, not twice, but three times already.

His next meeting is called for in a week or two.

Meanwhile it appears that Hillary is no longer flying high in the Obama administration. The original excuse is her elbow, but she seems to be getting cut out of everything interesting lately.

(Check out the part where she gets asked about Mitchell, and the part here where her spokesman gets asked about Mitchell. The centerpiece of Obama's foreign policy and Hillary has no clue what is even going on with the President's envoy.)

Could this mean no more inner circle for Mrs. Clinton?

Going back to Obama, a joke overheard in the Prime Minister's office is that an American calls up the White House and tells the President that his toilet is stuffed, his washing machine is broken, and his car needs a new transmission. Obama then makes a speech, and in 6 months everything is fixed. Except that in 6 months, the American calls up the White House...

Got it?

Anyway, will Obama make Mitchell into a liar?

Is Obama going to flip-flop on his Peace Initiative announcement date?

Rumor has it that not a single Arab country has moved even an inch towards Obama's most smallest requests of showing Israel any sign of reciprocity - leaving Obama in the lurch (of course, they could have moved an inch, and they're all just keeping it incredibly quiet).

Here's hoping.

Another reason to boycott Israel and the Jews - please

2009-07-17T11:15:00.002+03:00

One can only hope that the anti-Semites will choose to follow through on their boycott of Israeli and Jewish products.

The latest product we demand the anti-Semites boycott is an anti-radiation pill that provides the patient with a high survivability against radiation sickness- even from radiation levels like those of the Chernobyl disaster.

The pill was developed in a joint effort between an American Jewish scientist and an Israeli researcher.

The drug is estimated to be approved by the FDA within a year or two.

Furthermore, besides adding a significant layer of protection against Arab/Islamic/Iranian terrorist's dirty and nuclear bombs and missiles, it might also allow for higher radiation exposures for cancer patients and help them with their treatment.

Unfortunately, one can't count on anti-Semites to not be hypocritical, but one can dream.

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Hareidi Riots

2009-07-17T01:17:00.002+03:00

I don't know if the Hareidi boy is sick (like the Hareidim claim), or his mother is the sick (like the police and hospital claim).
We'll perhaps have the answer to that in a few days.

But what the heck is going on over there with all these Hareidi riots?

Is it too hot outside and there's no air conditioning? Do they need a TV to help pass the evening? Is someone playing political games?

Very strange.

Stealing History

2009-07-16T09:07:00.002+03:00

Is it hate, ignorance or apathy that lets the enemies of Israel boldly lie while accepting those lies at face value and with moral equivalence.

It's nothing new that the "Palestinians" have been trying to steal Jewish history and claim it for their own.

And what they can't claim, they try to destroy.

From their claims that there was no Temple on the Temple Mount where they temporarily parked their mosques, to the destruction of ancient Jewish religious sites and artifacts on the Temple Mount and throughout the country - the examples are unfortunately countless.

Their latest claim is that Israel looted and stole the Dead Sea Scrolls.

One doesn't know whether to laugh (or cry) and the utter patheticness of this latest claim, or be concerned that if the "Palestinians" can't claim the Isaiah Scroll and other biblical scrolls for themselves they may try to destroy them instead.

If I were living in Toronto, I would demand extra guards at the Royal Ontario Museum.

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No Bullets, No Booze

2009-07-14T09:34:00.006+03:00

If you follow the Muqata twitter, you would have noticed a few days ago that I mentioned that England has decided to begin a partial arms embargo on the Jewish State.

In retaliation for defending ourselves against Gaza terrorism, the UK has decided to place an embargo on replacement parts for some of the guns that our navy uses on the Saar 4.5 gunboats.

Now I've discussed boycotts against Israel extensively in the past.

The funny thing about embargoes and boycotts is that they can go both ways.

Turkey, for instance, decided to insult our President and deride Israel for defending ourselves. Israelis in return decided to boycott Turkey, and as a result, tourism from Israel (which was very significant) has dropped to almost nothing, and the Turkish government is beside itself as a result.

But there are other practical steps one can take on an individual level.

For instance, not long ago, the British government was lobbying the Israeli government to reduce liquor taxes, to boost sales in Israel of Scotch whisky.

With annual exports in excess of £2bn, Scotch Whisky is one of the UK's leading exports and supports thousands of jobs across the economy.

Well there you go. You can shoot off this quick EMAIL to the "Scotch Whisky Association".

Dear Sirs,

I love your country's Scotch Whiskey, but due to the decision of your government to place a partial arms embargo against the State of Israel for rightfully defending themselves against acts of terrorism emanating from the Gaza strip, I must regretfully return the favor and boycott all Scotch whiskey produced in the United Kingdom (and encourage all my friends and associates who support Israel to boycott your products as well), until such time that your government chooses to rescind their decision.

Sincerely,
YOUR NAME [replace your name here]

Now obviously, no one wants to boycott Scotch Whisky, but isn't this email the least our Kiddush clubs can do for our Jewish State?

Up to $10,000 in scholarships, loans and grants for Jewish men (ages 20-30) to acquire a year of learning in Israel at Yeshivat Hamivtar.

Shooting ourselves in the foot (again)

2009-07-10T09:09:00.002+03:00

Now Israel is considering allowing the PA to train "special forces units" to go along with their regular army units.

Hey Bibi, what happened to "demilitarized"?

Do you understand the word differently than me?

One of the proven-to-be-false assumptions of Oslo was that we can help defend ourselves by outsourcing fighting the terrorists who hate us to other terrorists who also hate us.

That obviously didn't and could never work out - and in fact we've seen (and see) on more than one occasion that the bad terrorists are actually listed on the payrolls of the good terrorists.

Yet here we are, doing it again.

(And just to remind you of the Makor Rishon report that says that Hamas has unequivocally infiltrated into the new PA army.)

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Netanyahu-Mitchell meeting canceled?

2009-07-10T01:05:00.001+03:00

Has the Netanyahu-Mitchell meeting canceled? There was supposed to be a meeting 2 weeks after the Ehud Barak meeting, which happened because Netanyahu blew off/fobbed off Mitchell before the first planned meeting.

Now the State Department won't give out a date for the next meeting.

Could Bibi be doing the right thing, and be avoiding Mitchell, and showing him how unproductive a relationship it's going to be?

Meanwhile, the State Department says that the US has not changed it opinion on the complete Settlement free, despite reports in certain Israel papers.

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17th of Tammuz

2009-07-09T09:05:00.001+03:00

Just a reminder that today is the 17th of Tammuz.

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Not even chased out!

2009-07-07T11:47:00.002+03:00

In a recent interview, chief PA terrorist Mahmoud Abbas explains that his family was not chased out of Tzfat (where he was born) in 1948 by the Jewish army (or by any force at all).

His family left on its own because they feared the Jews would take revenge on them for participating in the slaughter of 20 Jews in that city 19 years earlier.

They were so sure the "Zionists" would now take revenge on them, now that they had the power to do so, that they ran away to escape justice.

You can read more about it on A7.

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Lessons never learned

2009-07-06T10:38:00.003+03:00

So once again Israel is transfering weapons to the Palestinian Terrorist Authority.

This time it's 1000 Kalashnikov rifles (AK-47s). The delivery was delayed while Israel ran ballistic tests on every gun so they would know that when one of the PA terrorists kills a Jew they could properly identify the gun.

Gee, thanks.

To remind everyone, last week Makor-Rishon reported that Hamas had successfully infiltrated its men into the new PA army - though I won't be blaming Hamas for the next terror attack.

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Does the Road to Iran go through "Palestine'?

2009-07-05T07:55:00.004+03:00

Does the Road to Iran go through "Palestine"?

Obama claims that to be the case.

His administration believes that no Arab coalition against Iran can be built without there first being a resolution to the Palestinian issue. We settlers are the obstacle to peace and are enabling a nuclear Iran.

The Israelis and other analysts disagree.

Saudi Arabia and the other Arab states are much more threatened by a nuclear Iran then they are by a Palestinian State (which they don't really want either).

Having a Palestinian State means they can't blame Israel for their own dictatorial failures anymore.

And while the only thing more valuable to them than having that scapegoat is destroying the scapegoat, but since the destruction of Israel is not imminent on their part, they are more scared of what Iran will be able to do to them, then what Iran could do to Israel.

In fact, just the other day Mossad chief Meir Dagan told Bibi Netanyahu, that Saudi Arabia will allow Israel to overfly its territory on the way to destroying Iran's nuclear facilities. Other Israeli officials have mentioned the quiet working relationship with the Saudi dictators.

And from Saudi point of view, this could solve one if not two thorns in their side.

Israel destroys Iran's nuclear capabilities, and if they're lucky, Iran destroys Israel in return.

Could the Road to Iran go through Saudi Arabia, while "Palestine" remains a dead end alley filled with petty criminals and muggers?

I think the answer remains yes.

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"The air in Eretz Yisrael causes wisdom"

2009-07-03T07:40:00.003+03:00

"The air in Eretz Yisrael causes wisdom" (Baba Batra 158B)

This is perhaps best exemplified by the polls that indicate that 94% of Israelis would not define Obama as friendly to Israel, and 60% believe he will actually hurt Israel.

Meanwhile, 74% (or 79% depending on the poll) of American Jews support or trust Obama.

(I assume that 26% will be making Aliyah within the next few years, which will just make them even smarter).

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How Important I Am

2009-07-03T00:47:00.003+03:00

As a resident of the Land of Israel, sometimes it is the small things that remind me of how important I really must be.

Take today for instance.

Today, North Korea launched 4 short range missiles into the Sea of Japan, and announced that through next week will be launching longer range missile, including in the direction of Hawaii.

Yet despite the significance of that, the President of the United States thinks that my home, my family, and particularly my children are the greatest danger and obstacle to peace on the planet.

So much so, that He uses my house and family as His excuse to not try and stop Iran's nuclear weapons program with their genocidal intentions.

And you know what? He's right in a way.

My home and my family are the biggest obstacles - not to peace - but to prevent the destruction of the State of Israel.

That the President feels He needs to appoint Special Envoys to demand we stop having babies, and put extreme pressure on our Prime Minister to get him to take actions he's against, but the best action He can take against North Korea is to add some additional anti-missile defenses around Hawaii, and pointlessly trail a North Korean ship (possibly carrying nuclear weapons material) for weeks on end, well that just says it all, doesn't it?

I'm not saying He has to do it, but could it be the President isn't even prepared to initiate offensive action to defend His own country from a missile attack?

Iran is certainly watching how Obama reacts to North Korea's testing of the Obama administration. He'll probably run to the UN and angrily denounce this grave threat to international law (and the destruction of the Lost filming location).

And all I can say is, we Jews plan to keep expanding. Natural Growth is going to continue. And we plan to continue to defend ourselves - all with the help of God.

(Ehud) Barak holds his ground

2009-07-01T08:19:00.002+03:00

Without knowing what went on behind closed doors, publicly at least, Ehud Barak held his ground.

What is still unfortunate is that this US plans to try to meet with Netanyahu in 2 weeks (and make this a regular event too). As if the Prime Minister doesn't have better things to waste his time on.

What will Barak accomplish?

2009-06-30T02:22:00.004+03:00

Ehud Barak is in a funny position. Politically he is quite close to Obama, but he also represents the Israeli government and thus he quite opposes Obama too.

Tomorrow morning (US time), Barak will be meeting with US Envoy George "No more Jewish Births" Mitchell. The question on everyone's mind is what position will Barak take.

(He's bringing along Dan Meridor, the most far Left Likudnk in the bunch).

Whether the events of the past 2 days are coincidence or not (sure), Israel has made it very clear that they don't think much of Obama and Hillary's demands on the subject of settlement freezes and cessation, as well as the Obama administration's backtracking on previous understandings with Israel.

In the past 2 days Israel announced plans to expand new housing starts in Ma'aleh Adumim, Givat Ze'ev and Adam (though in part by moving the Migron residents into the expanded Adam village).

I don't think the message can be more explicit or "in your face" than that. (Much better than that Obama shoe picture).

Except perhaps when Netanyahu canceled his meeting with Mitchell and sent Barak to talk to him in his place.

So with Obama failing (politically an morally) on every troubled international arena he's playing in right now (Iran, Honduras, North Korea, Iraq, etc.), and going back on agreements and understandings with previous Israeli administrations (including one Netanyahu was a part of) Netanyahu has become emboldened to do more right things than wrong things (so far).

The Obama administration even seems to be taken aback by the ferocity of response by the average Israeli on the street who for the most part doesn't trust Obama and thinks his positions are anti-Israeli.

Altogether, with Israel putting forth such a united front, the State Department spokesman has started to hem and haw, talking about negotiations on the US positions and taking a "wait and see" attitude on the upcoming meeting.

Unfortunately rumor has it, that Barak may offer a 3 month freeze - whatever that actually means, as we are currently under a freeze, which has slowed down new construction significantly.

But the question still remains, who will Ehud Barak represent? His personal political viewpoint, or the governments? (And obviously just what is the government's position?)

And still it would be nice to see Obama do yet another flip flop and "clarification" of what he really meant. Just for the amusement factor.

(Why would Netanyahu offer a 3 month freeze and restart talks with the Palestinian enemy for nothing?

Because Obama has linked dealing with Iran to "Peace progress", and this will remove Obama's stated objections to dealing with Iran - which is existential threat number 1 to Israel right now.

And that will push Obama into a corner to either act, or prove that he is not a trustworthy ally, and then all cards are off the table.)

Anthing to keep Them out

2009-06-29T08:11:00.003+03:00

Is there no level that those on the Left will stoop to to keep their stranglehold on the Israel Judicial system?

Last week, the 3 Knesset Judicial Committee members made their recommendations for Supreme Court judges - and for the first time, all the suggestions were not Aharon Barak's ideological clones - and they all happened to be religious.

This upset Supreme Court President Dorit Beinisch as well as others of her political bent, and the campaign against the nominees began.

Suddenly the newspapers were calling one of the religious judges that was nominated a racist and a sexist.

The reports said how the Jerusalem judge simply let off a Chareidi man who hit an Ethiopian woman in front of witnesses.

But, none of the Left-wing newspapers actually gave the details of the case so their readers could make an informed decision on their own.

This is a judge who tries to incorporate Jewish law into his rulings (is that their real problem?). This is a judge known for being honest and fair. This is a judge who when he makes a ruling, doesn't simply give a ruling and leave it at that, rather he is known for writing comprehensive summaries explaining his decision and all the points involved. He is known for being a very competent judge.

And what was the case in question?

A Chareidi man hit an Ethiopian cashier. The details of the story are quite weird, and apparently he hit or pushed her while she tried to block his car after he didn't pay for his food (she wasn't seriously injured apparently).

But the important details are what comes next.

In court, the Chareidi man begged forgiveness from the woman for acting the way he did. He told her he was sorry, and repented. He said he sinned and was sorry.

The woman, to the surprise of all, accepted the man's apology, and said she believed he was being sincere, and she was dropping the suit.

The judge then called for a break so the woman could rethink her response while in a less emotional state. He was not going to accept her statement unless she thought about it while not under the pressure and emotion of the moment.

After the break, the Ethiopian woman again reiterated that she accepted his apology in full and believed the Chareidi man and that his apology was sincere.

The judge said (among other things) that in light of the man's asking for forgiveness, and the woman accepting it the case would be closed. The other things he mentioned are Jewish values, and the laws of forgiveness.

But then, on top of that he fined the man NIS 10,000 to pay the woman, regardless of her forgiving him.

Now I'm not a judge or a lawyer, but I simply don't see anything sexist or racist in this Judge's decision. In fact, he could have dropped the case right there, without any fine at all.

Yet this story (without the leftwing newspapers mentioning the details) is being touted as proof that this judge is racist, sexist, and unqualified to be a Supreme Court judge.

Wow!

A tax on the stupid

2009-06-28T00:05:00.002+03:00

It is often said that state lotteries are taxes on the stupid. Every day millions of people plop down their hard-earned money for a minute chance of striking it rich.

But that method has since been replaced as the preferred tool for milking the stupid.

Every week or so I get an email from Obama's staff asking me to support one of his new programs against whoever his latest straw man happens to be that is fighting him.

And at the end of nearly every email is a request for $5 to help support Obama.

In the latest email I got, Obama is now asking for $30 for your support and in exchange you get a limited edition t-shirt that tells the world you're a sucker.

He'll get his money.

Leonard Cohen to perform in a Settlement

2009-06-25T20:38:00.001+03:00

"Leonard Cohen to perform in Settlements"

That's how I understood the headline "Exclusive: Leonard Cohen to perform in West Bank as well as Israel" when I first saw it.

I thought perhaps he might come to my village. How exciting!

But then I read the article and learned he will be going to an Arab settlement.

Oh well. Maybe I'll pop over there to hear him.

How fragile democracy really is!

2009-06-21T10:34:00.002+03:00

I doubt I will be saying anything new to those who have given thought to the matter, but lately I have become more and more aware as to how fragile democracy really is.

And I’m not referring to just national politics. I mean democracy on every level, including at the municipal level, in the shul, in the community, and even among your neighbors.

Democracy relies on a few key pillars. Remove one, and democracy has been subverted and perhaps even destroyed.

There are always those who will seize more power and ignore the will of the people for various reasons, including for noble reasons, such as they think they simply know better.

First of those pillars are the rules of the game. Democracy requires that all the participants know and follow the rules of the game – and not just the letter, but the spirit.

It is far too easy for shortcuts to be invoked in the name of expediency or convenience, when in reality these are actually tools used by those looking to circumvent the will of the people.

And it is far too easy to ignore or change a rule, as most people are too apathetic (as we will see below) to react to a violation. So democracy absolutely requires that its members agree to follow the rules.

The spirit of the law is important too. Sometimes laws are passed, and everyone understands what is meant, but that doesn’t mean they think to put down every last detail - because who is actually thinking in that direction (except those looking to subvert that law)?

A favorite example is the tender. The law may require that a tender be publicized, but neglect to say where. So the tender will be posted where no one will know about it – conforming to the letter of the law exactly, but clearly not the spirit.

The playing field must be level. Everyone has interests or connections and relationships with people who have interests. That’s how and why back door deals are made, or more insidiously, how supposedly neutral third party arbitrators can subtly shift final decisions against the will of the majority.

To use the same example twice, this is most commonly seen in tenders, where somehow those with connections win – against all odds, or logic.

One solution to that is transparency, where all the details of all the responses must be publicized. It’s not foolproof, but it makes certain common types of hanky-panky more difficult or at least more difficult to explain away.

The rules of the game must be enforceable. It’s very nice that there are rules, but they must be constantly and consistently enforceable, otherwise those who have grabbed power can flout it when convenient for them.

Enforceable best means by punishment by law.

But that isn't always an option, so more arbitrary tools, exist such as shaming and other social tools. Going public (i.e. in the newspapers) is probably the best tool in this toolbox, but it is arbitrary and no guarantee of success. Other mechanisms also exist, such as the petition, the strike, civil disobedience, and others – but again – those are difficult to organize against small infractions, and that is what those who have the power count on.

There must be transparency, if for no other reason than to minimize the possibility of back room deals. And if there is no transparency (such as in a secret vote), there must be a way to verify that the counting was accurate and not manupulated.

And finally, and this is the most difficult one to achieve, you must have full member participation.

Democracy is so easily subverted, because those doing the subverting know that the majority of the participants are apathetic, and will go along with whatever they are told.

It takes a lot to wake people up, and the “salami method” (always taking little steps instead of big ones) guarantees the people don’t get riled up enough to react or revolt.

And those who get upset early one are "rocking the boat".

This is how your rights get chipped away.

Indifference is without a doubt the biggest danger to democracy. Most people are not involved in the decisions around them. Some don’t care. Some don’t have time. Some have learned you can’t fight city hall, and have given up.

What I find most interesting is how true this is, whether you are talking about a municipality deciding on whether to allocate a plot of public land, a neighborhood committee deciding how to utilize the community coffers, or whether you are the Prime Minister trying to force through a vote that doesn’t have a majority.

There must be a better way to prevent these small abuses, because that is where the biggest dangers and threats to democracy lie. But I am at a loss to think of any.

A quick question on US-Iran relations

2009-06-21T08:07:00.003+03:00

Are Iranian officials still invited to US Embassy 4th of July Barbecues this year?

Whither Twitter Iran

2009-06-20T21:37:00.000+03:00

From Israel’s point of view, what is going on in Iran right now is potentially tremendous.

There is a valid point raised by various senior Israelis that the differences between the two Iranian candidates regarding Israel and the Middle East are practically nonexistent.

That’s correct. But it is potentially irrelevant.

Because what is brewing in Iran is nothing less than a revolution.

And it isn’t about the candidates – it’s about the People.

And quite potentially, the People of Iran are taking back their government and their lives.

And I firmly believe the people of Iran want democracy and freedom from the Khomeinis and Khakamainis and perhaps even Islam fundamentalism itself!

And this is their chance to fix what went wrong in their society. A complete reset.

Israel has an obligation to say that we support the Iranian people.

Come what may, even if the other guy wins, nothing will remain the same if the hold of the religious fanatics that controls every facet of Iranian lives is broken, it will be a step forward.

And more so, because the Iranian people are not enemies of the Jews. In fact, nearly all historical anti-Semitism in Iran can be directly linked to, what else, Islam.

And even today, Israel’s Voice of Persia is a popular radio program listened to by millions of Iranians.

Joe Settler has one thing to say, Viva la Revolution.

Cherry Picking

2009-06-19T17:22:00.002+03:00

We went cherry picking today at the Rosh Tzurim Cherry Picking Festival.

There was bit of a balagan down the road where a bus was blocking the way (he was afraid to go, and didn't want to follow the instructions of anyone trying to guide him through the rows of cars).

We waited for a while until we decided to hike the rest of the way with all the kids.

We then bought our tickets (NIS 25 each and no discounts for kids), and then everyone on the line began to get really annoyed when the people handing out the plastic containers (to hold the cherries) couldn't decide if you get one container per ticket, one container per family, or 1 container per 2 tickets.

Enough screaming from everyone on the line (we were standing there in the hot sun while the girl in charge just sat there not moving) and finally she decided to move and give out containers (arguing with each person) after a good 10 minute wait.

Once inside things were much different. We went to one of the orchards and started collecting and eating cherries.

Thousands of people were there.

Up the hill was the festival, with music, food, concessions, balloons, games, and so on.

The cherries were delicious (we took off Ma'aser when we brought them home). And the festival was a lot of fun.

A little more organization at the beginning would have made this a perfect event.