Top 10 UN Watch Achievements of 2013

1. UN Watch revealed that Iran was quietly seeking a seat on the UN Human Rights Council, and shamed the regime for its despicable human rights record. Iran quickly pulled out of the race.

2. UN Watch broke its own media impact record this year with no less than 662 separate articles and broadcasts carrying our truth-telling message, including BBC, CNN, the Wall Street Journal, Le Monde and the New York Times. 

3. Top UN official Richard Falk, an open supporter of Hamas, lashed out at UN Watch and urged the world body to shut down UN Watch: “The effort to discredit me is spearheaded by the spurious UN Watch. What I didn’t expect was that such Zionist tactics would be given credibility by U.S. diplomats and by the Secretary General of the UN, who attacked me personally. UN Watch complicated my task.”The American Studies Association boycotters of Israel recently invoked Falk's support, but, thanks to UN Watch's information, it backfired on them.

4. When Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan told a UN summit on tolerance that Zionism was “a crime against humanity,” UN Watch mobilized world leaders to condemn his bigotry. Shocked and angered by the global criticism of his speech, Erdogan walked back his remarks.

5. UN Watch released a 2002 video showing UN expert Jean Ziegler winning the Qaddafi Prize—which he vehemently denied for 11 years. Though nothing could stop the jackals from reelecting him to the UNHRC, this supporter of Hezbollah was exposed as a liar and a fraud, condemned by U.S. Ambassador Samantha Power as “unfit to serve,” and rebuked by the Swiss Parliament. The Wall Street Journaldedicated a special video broadcast to the story, featuring UN Watch's director.

6. Tomorrow on January 1, 2014, Israel will for the first time be admitted into one of the UN Human Rights Council's regional groups, that of the West. Through its unrelenting 20 years of advocacy—including private diplomacy, lobbying, public campaigning, legal pleadings and U.S. congressional testimony—UN Watch helped lay the groundwork to finally end this injustice.

7. UN Watch fought the nomination of terrorism-supporter Mona Seif for the world's top human rights prize. Although Human Rights Watch, Amnesty International, Human Rights First and the other NGO sponsors refused to cancel or even condemn her nomination—which they instead celebrated on a video, and on posters plastered all over Geneva—in the end Mona Seif failed to win the prize.

8. When the UN elected China, Cuba, Russia, and Saudi Arabia to the Human Rights Council, it was UN Watch who exposed the hypocrisy before the world, sparking scores of media stories. UN Watch gave leading dissidents from those regimes a global platform to denounce their oppressors. Similarly, UN Watch's annual Geneva Summit for Human Rights empowers the world's most courageous champions of human rights.

9. When a one-sided UNHRC inquiry panel told Israel to surrender the Jewish Quarter of Jerusalem,UN Watch invited Nobel Peace Prize Laureate David Trimble to testify. He took the floor at the Council and said: "The United Nations and its human rights bodies should all be working with others to advance the cause of peace, not to hinder it. I regret to say that the Council displays the same selectivity that led to the abolition of the earlier Commission. I urge you to heed the criticism by successive UN secretary-generals of this council's habit of singling out only one specific country, to the exclusion of virtually everything else."

10. Just today, the Times of Israel named our famous UN interpreter report to its list of Top 10 blog posts for 2013:

Top 10 Worst U.N. Decisions of 2013

1. The UN Human Rights Council elected Hezbollah supporter Jean Ziegler, founder and recipient of the Muammar Qaddafi Human Rights Prize, as a top advisor.

2. The UN General Assembly adopted 21 condemnatory resolutions against Israel, compared to 4 on the rest of the world combined.

3. The same UN General Assembly elected China, Cuba, Russia, and Saudi Arabia to the UN Human Rights Council. The dictatorships will take their new seats on January 1, 2014.

4. UN Human Rights Council expert Richard Falk blamed the Boston Marathon terror bombings on "the American global domination project" and "Tel Aviv." Council members praised Falk and the presidentdefended him.

5. The UN Special Committee on Decolonization, charged with upholding fundamental human rights and opposing the subjugation of peoples, elected the murderous Syrian regime to a senior post.

6. The UN Conference on Disarmament in May 2013 made Iran its president.  

7. The UN Economic and Social Council, which oversees the UN women's rights commission, elected genocidal Sudan as its vice-president.  

8. The UN Human Rights Council elected slave-holding Mauritania to be its vice-president.

9. The UN chose Zimbabwe, a regime that systematically violates human rights, to host its world tourism summit.

10. UNESCO, which condemned no other country but Israel, and which was silent as Hamas bulldozed a world heritage site to make a terrorist training camp, allowed Syria to sit as a judge on UNESCO's human rights committee.

Fearless Gush Etzion Doctor Makes House Calls in Palestinian Villages

Dr. Yitz Glick in front of the Palestinian village he visits every week. Photo Credit: Natan Epstein, Tazpit News Agency On a day when snow still covers the Judean hills, a Jewish doctor from Efrat drives into the Wadi Nis Palestinian village. He is greeted by the locals with smiles and warm hellos. “There’s the doctor,” says one woman to another as Dr. Yitzchak Glick lowers his car window to say hello. To the villagers of Wadi Nis and six other Palestinian villages in the Gush Etzion region, the kippah-wearing Dr. Glick is a familiar and welcome face. This U.S. born doctor, who made aliyah with his parents in 1974, makes personal house calls every week, providing medical treatment free of charge to Palestinian patientss. When Dr. Glick sees Mohammed, a construction worker he treated for injuries from a fall from a building a couple of years ago, he stops and gets out of the car. Wearing a red and white keffiyeh headdress, Mohammed greets Dr. Glick with a hug and the two converse like old friends. “The people here don’t forget what I and other doctors from Efrat have done,” Glick says. “From treating expectant mothers and providing free medicine to saving lives, you become part of their families.” The connection runs so deep, that the Arab villagers have alerted Efrat authorities on several occasions against terror cells that were approaching the Jewish enclave. But Glick, a religious Zionist, not only provides medical care to Palestinians in the vicinity of their homes. In 2000, the Efrat doctor, who also travels once a month to work in a hospital emergency room in Cleveland, Ohio, founded the Efrat Emergency Medical Center (EEMC) during the second Intifada. Glick has been serving as the center’s medical director, as a volunteer, for nearly 14 years. The medical center serves both Israelis and Palestinians in Gush Etzion, treating anywhere from 50 to 100 patients a day, providing emergency care, Magen David Adom (EMT), radiology, pharmacy, and women’s health services. In total, EEMC provides medical care to about 50,000 people from the Gush Etzion-Hebron area. Efrat Emergency Medical Center. Photo credit: Natan Epstein, Tazpit News Agency. “There have always been good neighborly relations between many of the local Palestinians and the community of Efrat,” says Dr. Glick. “In the medical field, doctors are used to treating patients from all walks of life. Here in Gush Etzion, it’s no different – everyone is treated with respect and accorded quality medical care,” Glick adds. The doctor is also well-known for his treatment of Israeli terror and traffic accident victims, arriving first on scene. He has received the Presidential Award for Volunteerism from President Shimon Peres in 2009 and the Moskowitz Prize for Zionism in 2012. Dr. Glick, along with his right-hand man and EEMC development manager Yossi Hass, describe how, during the recent snowstorm in Efrat, an ambulance volunteer discovered a Palestinian suffering from hypothermia in the Hebron area. The volunteer brought the man to the medical center, where he was treated and remained through the snowy night. “There are so many stories like this that happen daily,” said Dr. Glick. “They show another side of reality – where Jewish and Arab residents live together and do their best for each other.” According to Nave Dromi, a spokesperson for Blue&White Human Rights the public, both in Israel and abroad, has no awareness of such co-existence initiatives. “It is little known to even many Israelis, that there are Jewish residents in Judea and Samaria who ensure human rights for all the citizens in the region, specifically for Palestinians,” says Dromi. Established by the Institute for Zionist Strategies, Blue&White Human Rights works to provide equal medical care to Palestinians, as well as educate the public about the co-existence initiatives in the area. “There is a completely different side to the politics and conflict that mainstream media choose to cover in Judea and Samaria,” Dromi explains, adding, “Politics has no place in the field of medicine and healthcare, and Jewish doctors take care of ‘the other’ every day.” Indeed, Dr. Glick, father of five children who has been a resident of Efrat for 20 years, believes that “the universe is big enough for all of us here.” Pointing at the local Rami Levy supermarket where local Jews and Palestinians work and shop, Dr. Glick says, “We go shopping for food together, we buy gas for our vehicles together, we get the same medical care and we work together – Jewish and Palestinian residents share a way of life in Gush Etzion.” “We aren’t going anywhere and they aren’t going anywhere – we are all here to stay,” Dr. Glick promises.

Read more at: http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/fearless-gush-etzion-doctor-makes-house-calls-in-palestinian-villages/2013/12/31/0/

An ancient Jerusalem synagogue, destroyed in 1948

ELDER OF ZIYON: Abbas embraces terrorists, calls them heroes (poster)

Here's video of Abbas welcoming the terrorists as heroes and his speech at the ceremony.



During his speech Abbas said "We promise that it will not be the last time, but there will be a batch ofheroes coming to us all the time and in the near future, God willing....This is the day the joy of all of us the joy of our people for our prisoner heroes who came out today to the light of freedom to live free, we congratulate you and congratulate ourselves with these heroes who arrived here and who arrived in Jerusalem, Gaza, and the rest will come, God willing."

He said that soon there will be a Palestinian state whose capital is Jerusalem and the Palestinian flag will fly over the minarets and churches of Jerusalem. 

We know what would happen to the synagogues if he had his choice.

ELDER OF ZIYON: A rainbow over Israel

This photo was taken by Niece of Ziyon, who recently made aliyah with her new husband,  from her apartment window on Monday. One end of the rainbow is at Har HaMenuchot.

ISRAEL MATZAV; I'm glad my son's murderers have not been found'

What a powerful indictment of the Israeli government's deer-in-the-headlights approach to releasing terrorists. 

Please, Israeli government, I beg you: Don’t go looking for my son’s killers. The ones who cruelly beat Koby and Yosef to death with rocks, the barbarians who attacked two eighth grade boys —  my son and his friend — who were on a hike near our home in Israel. Please don’t find them. Don’t apprehend them and put them in jail and make my family and me sit through a long trial and sentencing, where my heart will quake and my stomach will constrict and I will feel that I am about to faint. 

Don’t find them guilty and put them in jail. Because I don’t want the torture of knowing that these killers will find their way to freedom one day, will be greeted by their mothers with hugs, while my son and Yosef lie in the ground. I could not bear to go through what 26 Israeli families are going through today: betrayal by the government that is supposed to protect them.  

...

As a bereaved mother, it is difficult to speak out. It hurts. Yet a group of bereaved mothers created an organization called Forever Mothers. We visited the Knesset last week to lobby against the prison release. Tali Ben Yishai is a member of our group. Her daughter Ruthie and her son-in-law and three grandchildren, including a three-month-old baby, were murdered when a terrorist broke into their house close to midnight and stabbed them all to death in their beds. It is conceivable that one day their murderer could be released. After all, today the Israeli government is releasing the murderers of Rachel Weiss who along with her three children was killed in a bus bombing. As the bus burned, she tried to get her children off. A soldier who was on the bus, on his way home, David Delerosa, tried to help her but the bus exploded before they could exit. They were burned to death.

Shira Avraham, a member of Forever Mothers, knows what happens when terrorists are released. Her nine-month-old baby Shaked was murdered in her home by a terrorist who had been released in a former deal. He broke into Shira’s home the night of the festive meal of Rosh Hashanah, and murdered her baby and the friend who was holding her.

At our meeting, one of the few Knesset members who attended said, “It’s a disgrace that you bereaved mothers have to come fight for your children. It is the government that should be protecting you.”

He is right. It should not be bereaved families leading this fight. The government should be protecting the most vulnerable families. In addition, every Israeli citizen should be protesting.

Read it all.

Former MK Eldad: Time to Treat the Temple Mount Like a Holy Site; Former MK slams government's conduct with respect to the Temple Mount, after secret report reveals serious Israeli failures since 1967.

Former MK Professor Aryeh Eldad, head of the Professors for a Strong Israel organization, sharply criticized on Sunday the way the State of Israel has been conducting itself since 1967 with respect to the Temple Mount.

Eldad’s remarks come in the wake of the publication of the contents of a secret report by the State Comptroller regardingthe enforcement, or lack thereof, of the law at the Temple Mount.

The report was not made public in Israel because of concerns that doing so would result in violence. However, a New York-based Jewish website got its hands on the report and published it last week. The report reveals some disturbing truths about the methods taken by the Waqf to remove any ties that the Jewish people have to the Temple Mount and how Israeli institutions cooperated with these actions.

Eldad told Arutz Sheva that the contents of the report, as they were published by the American website, indicate how much the government failed when it abandoned the Temple Mount and left it in the hands of the Waqf which was appointed by the Jordanian government.

He further noted that the report shows that the Jerusalem Municipality , the Israel Antiquities Authority and other law enforcement officials do not operate on the Temple Mount. Only the police operates on the Temple Mount, but it avoids confrontation with the Waqf in order to maintain its good relations with it. When this is the case, said Eldad, it is no wonder that the Arab illegal construction at the site continues undisturbed.

Asked whether he can accept the Israeli position that it is better to maintain peace and quiet on the Temple Mount rather than confront the Waqf, Eldad responded that such a consideration could be acceptable had the subject matter not been the Temple Mount, the holiest site to Jews.

"You can decide to ignore the Bedouin land theft in the Negev, but the Temple Mount is the most important issue there is,” he told Arutz Sheva. “It’s not for nothing that Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu described the Temple Mount as the rock of our existence, and if he means what he said and it was not just empty chatter, then the site should be treated accordingly and we must not allow the Waqf to destroy the remains of the First and Second Temple and build an illegal construction site.”

The Temple Mount is Judaism's holiest site and the location of the two Holy Temples of Jerusalem, the latter of which was destroyed by the Romans in 70CE.

Despite that fact, Jewish visitors face severe restrictions upon ascending the Mount, including a blanket ban on praying or on performing any other form of worship, as well as restrictions on the size of groups which can ascend. Those who violate the restrictions face arrest and a prolonged ban from ascending altogether.

Numerous court rulings have stipulated that Jews must be permitted to pray on the Temple Mount as a basic right to freedom of religion. Nevertheless, the Israeli police force has repeatedly ignored the rulings, citing unspecified "security concerns" as a pretext to continue enforcing the ban.

Police sometimes close the Mount to Jews altogether in response toMuslim riots - for days or weeks at a time - despite evidence that such violence is usually planned in advance for the specific purpose of forcing Jews out. Prominent Israeli MKs, such as Moshe Feiglin and Zeev Elkin, have been forced to leave the Temple Mount due to fears of violence.

The Waqf, which was left in charge of the Temple Mount after Israel liberated it during the 1967 Six Day War, consistently destroys Jewish antiquities on the compound in a direct violation of a ruling by the Supreme Court.

Israel Matzav: Building in Jerusalem is about Jewish rights

A great piece on building in Jerusalem by Nadav Shragai (who, incredibly, used to write for Haaretz!) in Israel HaYom. 

We've almost forgotten, but Zionism was formed in Zion. Building in Jerusalem -- the manifestation of the Jewish right to return to the homeland -- is Zionism. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry and his European counterparts may not applaud those sentiments, but its high time we got used to that. More importantly -- Kerry has, for months, been speaking to us in one language, the language of security and security arrangements. We need to remind Kerry that Jews are living in Jerusalem and other cities and towns in Israel because of our bond and right to the land itself, not for the sake of security. We absolutely need to hold a discussion with Kerry and his counterparts about Jewish rights. That's what the Palestinians have done and that's what we need to do. Security is indeed a goal in and of itself, but it's also a means, and we tend to ignore that fact. Building in Jerusalem is the perfect reminder that we are living here in Israel not simply thanks to our might (which is extremely important), but more importantly by the might of our right. 

Whether or not we release terrorists from prison, we must speed up our building in and around Jerusalem for other reasons as well. There's a struggle in the city and its environs that the public does not know about. That struggle is going to determine whether Israel could divide Jerusalem -- as the Left so desires -- or not. As Israelis and Palestinians compete to develop various parts of the city (most Palestinian development is illegal), urban contiguity is called into question. 

Take, for example, the Jewish neighborhood in Shimon Hatzadik-Sheikh Jarrah, which is only half finished. The city, under government orders, has halted construction. Once complete, the community would connect the neighborhoods of Ramot Eshkol and Maalot Dafna with Mount Scopus, where the Hadassah Medical Center and Hebrew University are located. If we don't tighten our grip on Sheikh Jarrah-Shimon Hatzadik, the Palestinians are going to do it themselves, bolstering their claims to the area as part of a final arrangement. Disconnecting Mount Scopus from the rest of Jerusalem -- before 1967 it was tiny enclave administered by the U.N. -- is one of the possible outcomes of that scenario.

The picture is similar over the hills between Jerusalem and Maaleh Adumim (inside the E1 zone). The U.S. has so far prevented Israel from building there, but the consequences of that decision are acute: Either there will be contiguous Israeli development from west to east, connecting Maaleh Adumim to Jerusalem, or contiguous Palestinian development from north to south, which would sever Maaleh Adumim from the capital. In the meantime, the Israelis have stopped building, while the Bedouin, encouraged by the Palestinians to disregard the Israeli authorities, are continuing to build. Even the fragile Israeli link between downtown Jerusalem and the string of neighborhoods Israel built up after 1967 is not secure. Between the two, there are swaths of land that, lacking Israeli development, the Palestinians will utilize. 

Housing in the capital is also a pressing matter. Some 18,000 Jews leave the city every year. Prices have skyrocketed because of the great demand and minimal supply. The Arabs also use the demographic angle to their advantage -- the Jewish majority is shrinking all the time. For these reasons and more, when Israel decides to build, it needs to be in the direction of Jerusalem.

Read the whole thing. 

Shlomo Katz - Niggun of the Birds

Will Neturei Karta be outlawed? The bill states that a body which rejects a Jewish state or acts for a bi - national state will not able to register the NGO Law

MK Miri Regev, initiates a new law, that an organization that denies the Jewish character of the state, cannot register with the Registrar of Associations. 

According to existing NGO Law, registrar can prevent the registration of an association if it negates the democratic character of the State of Israel, but no mention for maintaining the Jewish character. 

According to the amendment, offered by MK Miri Regev, to kick in a little more than a week a vote in the Committee of Ministers, an association which one of the goals seeks to deny the Jewish character of the state will not be able to register as an association. 

Under the bill, an NGO that supports the state of all its citizens, Israel will not be able to register a legal association. The same body that supports the cancellation of the state and its replacement by a non-Jewish government, such as the 'Neturei Karta', cannot legally be a non-profit organization. 

Two weeks ago the Committee of Ministers approved the NGO Law which states to impose a tax on donations received by foreign political entity associations, whether incoming association's goals to the goals set by the bill. Progress was delayed due to an appeal of ratification law.

Chai Lifeline Celebrates ‘The Roads to Healing’ At Annual Gala Dinner

Over 1,100 people joined Chai Lifeline at their Annual Gala Dinner held at the Marriott Marquis. The dinner’s theme, “The Roads to Healing,” highlighted the extraordinarily diverse experiences of the more than 4,300 children and families served by the international organization. “Every family’s journey is unique,” noted Rabbi Simcha Scholar, Chai Lifeline’s executive vice president. “But the one thing that every journey has in common is that Chai Lifeline has made it an easier road to travel.”

This year’s Gala honored a group of people whose tireless work and support has been as distinctive as they each are. Benji and Raissa Samet were presented with the Camp Simcha Appreciation Award. After four years as a Camp Simcha counselor and a year-round volunteer, Benji transitioned into a dedicated alumnus of the camp staff. Together with his wife, Raissa, Benji has been an integral force in defining ways for alumni to remain involved in the organization. He has taken the lead in creating “Time for Two,” a new program that helps parents de-stress for a few hours by sending them on a “date night” to a New York restaurant or by taking their children for a few hours of a fun activity.Chai Lifeline shows appreciation for alumnus Benji Samet and wife, Raissa

Dr. Richard O’Reilly, Retiring Medical Pioneer, Named Maimonides Legacy Award Recipient

Dr. Richard O’Reilly, chief of pediatrics and the head of the bone marrow transplantation service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, was honored for his career of advancing transplantation and saving young lives. “Though he is retiring from Memorial Sloan Kettering, he leaves a legacy of advances in transplant medicine that has already given so many families a precious gift of life, and is providing the building blocks for more breakthroughs,” Rabbi Scholar noted.

Dr. O’Reilly’s compassion and generosity was noted by master of ceremonies Charlie Harary. “He is well-known to families whose children have had bone marrow transplants, even those whose transplants are performed in other hospitals, as he graciously will talk to anyone in this terrible position,” Harary said.

Drs. Brenda Kohn and Walter Molofsky presented with Medical Leadership Award

A very unusual couple, partners in life and in saving lives, received the Medical Leadership Award. Brenda Kohn, MD is the director of pediatric endocrinology at NYU Langone Medical Center. Her husband, Walter Molofsky, MD, is the medical director of pediatric neurology of the Mount Sinai Medical System, which recently grew to include the Beth Israel Medical Center. The doctors have been staunch supporters of Chai Lifeline since its inception. They understand the impact of Chai Lifeline upon young lives firsthand, as both have patients who are also Chai Lifeline clients.

“In the fall, we hear stories of (our patients’) Camp Simcha experiences. Soon after, they start counting down until they can go back,” Dr. Molofsky explained.

Chai Lifeline parents presented with Chai Heritage Award

Mike and Karen Oz, who discovered Chai Lifeline when their child, Leya, entered The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, received the 2013 Chai Heritage Award. Leya had been in a New York hospital for more than four months when her desperate parents transferred her to CHOP. She was diagnosed with SCID (Severe Combined Immunity Deficiency) and an emergency bone marrow transplant was performed. The Oz family moved to Philadelphia for more than year for Leya’s treatment; Chai Lifeline’s case manager in the hospital was a constant reassuring presence in their lives.

Rabbi Scholar stated that “The supportive relationship between Karen, Mike and Chai Lifeline is really what we are all about. The Oz’s didn’t need a lot of concrete services; what they needed was a hand to hold, a reassuring phone call, a daily visit, reassurances, information, help navigating the hospital system, and hope. The friendship that has grown between us is a result of the supportive relationship that was nurtured during those months.”

Friends and Fun Weekends Dedicated at Event

The event also marked the dedication of Friends ‘N Fun Weekends in memory of Sari Ort, a cherished member of the Chai Lifeline family who lost her battle with cancer.

Sari courageously fought cancer for three years. She spent summers in Camp Simcha and maintained the important friendships with peers and counselors year-round. Her family joined with other Teaneck leaders earlier this year to create a memorable Friends ‘n Fun weekend in the community.

Friends ‘n Fun weekends bring campers together during the year for a booster shot of the confidence, courage, and friendship they experience at Camp Simcha and Camp Simcha Special. They spend a weekend in a community together with their counselors and a medical staff. It gives the community a chance to see Chai Lifeline in action, and to become involved on a grass-roots level.

Capacity crowd Reflects Organization’s Impact, Caseload and Universal Support

The diversity of Chai Lifeline supporters and clients was evident in the crowded Marriott Ballroom. Parents from Williamsburg greeted peers from the Upper East Side, new friends they met in treatment clinics and pediatric specialists’ offices around the greater New York area. Monsey businessmen chatted with Wall Street bankers as they walked together from the reception to the dinner. Master of ceremonies Charlie Harary underscored the all-encompassing nature of Chai Lifeline’s work.

“Through case management, referrals, hospital visits, respite, food, transportation assistance to Big Brothers/Sisters, recreation, sibling programs, counseling, retreats and family celebrations, Chai Lifeline interfaces with children and families from every spectrum of the Jewish community. Regardless of orientation, our families have one very important thing in common: they are all living with pediatric illness. Caring for them…helping them live each day with hope…enabling them to get through the crises and challenges of their lives…that is the mission of Chai Lifeline.”

Videos produced by BIG Productions.

- See more at: http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/news/human-interest/207904/videos-photos-chai-lifeline-celebrates-the-roads-to-healing-at-annual-gala-dinner.html#sthash.VgXS3qqf.dpuf

ELDER OF ZIYON: Egyptian banner calls to kill all Jews in Egypt

Seen on Twitter, from a Facebook posting:


This is in response to the bombing that killed 16 on Tuesday morning.Think about this for a second: Someone in Mansour went to a print shop and paid to create a large anti-semitic banner (or the print-shop owner did it himself.). It then took considerable effort to hang the sign in a public street. It was that important for someone or some group to put out a public antisemitic message in Egypt.Jews are always the scapegoats. Although in modern times it is more fashionable to use the Jewish state to fill that role.

The X-mas Tree Kiddush Hashem

Rabbi Berel Wein was once invited to a meeting with the editor of the Detroit Free Press. After introductions had been made, the editor told him the following story.

His mother, Mary, had immigrated to America from Ireland as an uneducated, 18-year-old peasant girl. She was hired as a domestic maid by an observant Jewish family. The head of the house was the president of the neighboring Orthodox shul.

Mary knew nothing about Judaism and had probably never met a Jew before arriving in America. The family went on vacation Mary’s first December in America, leaving Mary alone in the house. They were scheduled to return on the night of December 24, and Mary realized that there would be no X-mas tree to greet them when they did. This bothered her greatly, and using the money the family had left her, she went out and purchased not only a X-mas tree but all kinds of festive decorations to hang on the front of the house.

When the family returned from vacation, they saw the X-mas tree through the living room window and the rest of the house festooned with holiday lights. They assumed that they had somehow pulled into the wrong driveway and drove around the block. But alas, it was their address.

The head of the family entered the house contemplating how to explain the X-mas tree and lights to the members of the shul, most of whom walked right past his house on their way to shul. Meanwhile, Mary was eagerly anticipating the family’s excitement when they realized that they would not be without an X-mas tree.

After entering the house, the head of the family called Mary into his study. He told her, “In my whole life no one has ever done such a beautiful thing for me as you did.” Then he took out a $100 bill — a very large sum in the middle of the Depression — and gave it to her. Only after that did he explain that Jews do not have
X-mas trees.

When he had finished telling the story, the editor told Rabbi Wein, “And that is why, there has never been an editorial critical of Israel in the Detroit Free Press since I became editor, and never will be as long as I am the editor.”

The shul president’s reaction to Mary’s mistake — sympathy instead of anger — was not because he dreamed that one day her son would the editor of a major metropolitan paper, and thus in a position to aid Israel. (Israel was not yet born.) He acted as he did because it was the right thing to do.

That’s what it means to be a Kiddush Hashem, to sanctify God’s Name. It is a goal to which we can all strive.

{Virtual Jerusalem/Matzav.com Newscenter}

Mercava: The future of Jewish education

How the media covers Hamas attacks on Israel

Video of interest: Speeches At Satmar (KJ) Anti-Israel March In Manhattan - See more at: http://www.theyeshivaworld.com/news/ywn-videos/207752/video-of-interest-speeches-at-satmar-kj-anti-israel-march-in-manhattan.html#sthash.p7Bx3cda.dpuf

Na Nach Singing Doll - .אשרינו, אשרינו, אשרינו שיש לנו רבי כזה

The Song of Shabbos - Shlomo Katz (composed by R Shlomo Carlebach ob'm) On a rooftop overlooking the old city of Jerusalem Friday Afternoon ... Getting Ready for Shabbos

Editorial cartoon: US spying on Israel - Translation: "I've asked them a million times to release Pollard, but that Obama just doesn't listen."

Historian Says Bugs Bunny Might be Jewish | Jerusalem State of Mind

A noted Jewish-British cinematic historian has claimed that the world’s most famous rabbit displays prominent Jewish characteristics. According to film scholar David Yehuda Stern, Bugs Bunny was created by a Jewish producer, lived in a Jewish neighborhood, has a distinctly New York/Jewish accent and uses his wit and sense of humor to avoid all attempts to eliminate him.

Stern revealed his findings at a lecture held recently at Britain’s University of Warwick, Israeli daily Ma’ariv reported. Stern, who watched thousands of animated shorts that feature Bugs Bunny, noted in his presentation that there are Jewish fingerprints all over the smart aleck cartoon character, including the very voice of Bugs Bunny – Jewish actor Mel Blanc.

Stern’s exhaustive study even included the findings of one specific cartoon episode in which Bugs Bunny flashes back to his childhood. The New York neighborhood Bugs grew up in is teeming with obviously Jewish characters, such as ultra-Orthodox Jews and other stereotypically Eastern European figures from the turn of the 20th century.

Stern closed his case for Bugs Bunny being Jewish by reminding his audience that the legendary rabbit’s arch nemesis is…Porky Pig. The pig, of course, is Judaism’s quintessentially unclean animal.

Lastly, Stern joked that the word ‘rabbit’ becomes ‘rabbi’ if you just get rid of the final letter…

Bugs! buballeh! Welcome home!

Maccabeats on Katie

Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach's Chaunkah Stories, Good All Year Long

This title isn't just an excuse for finishing the book, The Soul of Chanukah: Teachings of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach by: Shlomo Katz, and writing the review after Chanukah.  Being a fan of Carlebach's homey stories almost half a century, I'm totally serious and sincere when I say that the book shouldn't be limited to Chanukah. 

I first heard of and heard in person Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach the winter of 1965-66 when he performed in the Great Neck Synagogue. His performance was one of the big events organized by the then new Youth Director, Joel Paul.  After the show, I was among the select group invited to a private home to hear more of his stories and songs.  If I'm not mistaken he performed again in Great Neck the following year. 

At that time in my life I was becoming religious after a few years of attending NCSY events and by then reaching the level of Regional Vice President.  Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach's style and stories were very different from my NCSY rabbis who gave us a more intellectual Judaism versus the emotionalism of Carlebach.  Another difference that I noticed immediately was that he didn't demand perfection from us. 

A few years later, I was married and living in Israel.  Reb Shlomo was there, too.  My husband and I went to a lot of his performances and knew many of his "chassidim," those who lived on the Moshav.

Carlebach's was a more "human" Judaism.  And I really loved his stories and still do.  They comfort and let us know that G-d loves us and appreciates our efforts, even when unsuccessful.  I think that is the element in the Shlomo Carlebach Torah Judaism that has made him more and more popular with each year since his death.  He never claimed to be perfect, and people understood from him that we must try harder.  G-d is waiting for us.

Here's a story from The Soul of Chanukah: Teachings of Rabbi Shlomo Carlebach by Shlomo Katz.

‘When the lowest person in the world was a child, he was dreaming about being the holiest, most glorious person in the world. But something happened. Someone destroyed his dreams, and he gave up on the world.
It is so easy to lose our dreams. Why?
Because nobody really encourages them.
If someone can bring me back to the dreams I once had, he is my best friend in the world.This is what Chanukah does. This is why Chanukah is the greatest, deepest holiday in the world.
On Chanukah, God gives us back our dreams.’

That's why I consider this Chanukah book to be a book for the entire year for yourself, and to give as a gift to others.  It took me a while to read it, because there's too much in it to read quickly.  It's the type of book you want to savour and not finish until you have no choice.

Satmar Anti IDF Draft March In Manhattan 12-24-13

2 Recent Posts About This Demonstration:

Rebuttal The Real Truth about Palestine

Watch Ambassador Danny Ayalon as he rebuttals to "The real Truth about Palestine" 
"Palestine was the Greco-Roman name for a region. In the year 135 AC, the name of the region became the official name of one of the provinces of the Roman Empire in an attempt to obliterate the connection between the Jewish people and Judea - the land they've inhabited for over 1000 years. 
However, like Antarctica, the Amazons or the Sahara, naming a place doesn't create a nation of Antarcticans or Saharans.
Oh, and for the record, Jesus was not a Palestinian, he was a Judean Jew."

Schmuck Dynasty

Hat Tip Jspace

CAMERA Ad Hits Failure of NYT to Cover Incitement

"Harvest the skulls of the Jews!" That was the exhortation of a Hamas spokesman broadcast on Palestinian television – but The New York Times never reported it. Genocidal incitement against Israel is almost totally ignored by the publication.
 
CAMERA has long deplored the failure of The Times to cover such calls for genocide against the Jews by Hamas and other Palestinian groups. Only very rarely is the pervasive propaganda reported and then almost always it’s couched in qualifying language dismissive of its deep influence on the attitudes of the Palestinian people.
 
Dehumanizing Jews and exhorting Palestinians to annihilate Israel and the Jewish people obviously thwarts achievement of genuine peace on many levels. Having educated their people to believe Israel is illegitimate and an entity to be destroyed, instead of educating them to accept a legitimate neighboring nation, Palestinian leaders -- if they want a peace agreement -- will have difficulty selling compromise and an end of the conflict.
 
Had The Times not grossly neglected this central issue and instead given it the attention warranted, the American public would be far more aware of the nature of Israel’s adversaries and the challenges in arriving at a durable peace. Also, importantly, shining a journalistic light on the bigoted attacks might very well have helped to diminish them.
 
CAMERA’s second ad (see below) in an ongoing series focuses on The Timesdereliction in almost entirely ignoring the incidence of genocidal incitement. Three examples – from 2011, 2012 and 2013 underscore the pattern of neglect.
 
The Ad appeared in Friday’s New York Metro and in today’s New York Post and AM New York. Many more are to come.

PMW: PA promotes murder as positive act at cultural event At official PA event under the auspices of Abbas, a play ended with killing of all the "Israelis" and the cold-blooded murder of a Palestinian "spy," to the cheers of the Palestinian audience by Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik

At a Palestinian Authority event under the auspices of Chairman Mahmoud Abbas, with the participation of the Minister of Culture, the Palestinian Authority portrayed murder as a positive act.



The event started with PA Minister of Culture Anwar Abu Aisha honoring a number of released terrorist murderers by inviting them on stage and awarding them PA plaques of honor. Palestinian Media Watch has documented that the PA uses cultural events to honor terrorists.

Later in the program, a play was performed by Palestinian youth. The play opens with young actors who are divided into two rival camps of Hamas and Fatah supporters. Eventually they throw away their Fatah and Hamas flags, uniting under the PA flag. Then they shoot and kill all the "Israelis." Among the dead bodies of the Israelis, they find a Palestinian who had been spying for Israel.

The "spy" begs for his life. However, the Palestinian leader makes him kneel down and shoots him in the head.

In response to the staged murder, the audience erupts in applause and whistles. The united Fatah and Hamas group salute their leader - the murderer - who marches around with the Palestinian flag.

PA Minister of Culture Anwar Abu Aisha hands plaque to released murderer Muhammad Nasr.

PA Minister of Culture Anwar Abu Aisha shakes hand of released murderer Asrar Samrin.

Click to view

The plaques of honor given to the released terrorist murderers showed a map of "Palestine," denying the existence of Israel.

At a Fatah event in 2009, a skit also portrayed the rivalry between Fatah and Hamas. Students belonging to the two organizations argued over which organization was greater and which had done the most to fight Israel. Hamas students boasted the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, while Fatah students boasted the lynch in Ramallah in 2000 in which two Israeli soldiers were brutally murdered.







The following is the transcript of the play that was broadcast on PA TV Live:

Girl: "[Fatah and Hamas], unify your ranks. Palestine is calling you. Al-Aqsa [Mosque] is calling you. Haifa, Acre, Jaffa, Lod, Tiberias, Ramle and Safed (all are cities in Israel) all of Palestine is calling you from the river to the deep sea (i.e., all of Israel)..."
Boy: "Do you remember this guy that you saw here? He's a traitor, a damn spy. In life, it's either victory or Martyrdom death for Allah..."
[Palestinians shoot Israelis and capture the spy. The spy begs for his life. The spy is murdered and audience applauds.]

PA TV ad announcing this event:"Under the auspices of Mahmoud Abbas, Ramallah's Youth Club is honored to invite you to the 5th Festival of the Heritage of the Fathers"

[Official PA TV Live, Dec. 9, 2013]

Descriptions of the released terrorist prisoners, pictured above:

Asrar Samrin - was serving a life sentence for the murder of Israeli citizen Tzvi Klein (Dec. 3,1991), but was released in October 2013 as one of 104 terrorists whom Israel agreed to release to fulfill the PA's precondition for renewing negotiations.

Muhammad Nasr and Rafe' Karajeh murdered reserve soldier Aharon Avidar in a Ramallah market in February 1985. He was serving a life sentence, but was released in October 2013 as one of 104 terrorists whom Israel agreed to release to fulfill the PA's precondition for renewing negotiations.