Hilary Clinton, the front running Dem for Pres 08, supported Israel’s attack on a suspected Syrian Nuke facility:

During a presidential debate on NBC Wednesday night, the Democratic hopeful said: “What we think we know is that with North Korean help, financial and technical and material, the Syrians apparently were putting together, and perhaps over some period of years, a nuclear facility, and the Israelis took it out. I strongly support that.”

Other Dems are mighty upset and think Hillary is hawking it too much even, they say, setting the stage for an attack on Iran. So is Hilary a hawk or a dove? She wants to use violent means to stop evil, but is she willing to put soldiers in harms way? Or is she the kind of hawk that her hubby was – send in the cruise missiles and see what is left afterwards to mop up?

She also voted to call Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard a terror outfit:

But Clinton argued that the Guard Corps was “promoting terrorism” by aiding insurgents in Iraq and supporting Hezbollah and Hamas, the Jerusalem Post reported.

She said that designating the group as a terrorist organization would “give us the options to be able to impose sanctions on the primary leaders.”

Democratic Senators and presidential candidates Joe Biden and Chris Dodd voted against the resolution, and John Edwards criticized it. Barack Obama abstained from the Senate vote.

UPDATE: Obama was NOT THERE…He didn’t even show…

What in the world is Obama doing here abstaining? Take a stand Obama!? The Iranian Guard are a bunch of bad dudes doing very bad stuff. By designating them a terror group the US can effectively try to pinch them financially, and restrict their people from making trips to the US etc. Why the abstention? Who is advising you on Int Affairs? What Would Dennis Ross Do?

As I have written before, Obama is vague and simply uninformed on the Middle East and most international issues. I am not endorsing Hilary—she will have to at least promise me an appointment to get that and hire Jewlicious as her official liaison to the Jewish community:-)—but her approach to international events at least invokes the tone of someone who is informed. Even if we may disagree.

Here’s what they say at Engage Forum:

The campaign for an academic boycott of Israel has ended today in an absolute and final political, legal and moral defeat.

The University and College Union’s (UCU) own lawyers advised it that a policy to exclude academics who work in Israel from the global academic community – and to exclude nobody else on the planet – would have been a violation of equal opportunities legislation in Britain.

The article goes on to make what Muffti thinks are two excellent points:

It will be claimed by the campaign to exclude Israelis from our campuses, conferences and journals that the end of the boycott in UCU represents a capitulation to ‘bourgeois’ or ‘Zioinst’ law (the two adjectives have become inter-changeable amongst some ‘anti-Zionist’ ‘anti-capitalists’). In truth, however, anti-discrimination law is not a mode of state repression but a victory, hard-won, by generations of antiracist activists. It is a good thing that there is law in place which prohibits bodies like our union from discriminating against Jews.…

Those who were for a boycott of Israel were not for boycotting the academics in all states which abused human rights but only in Jewish states which abused human rights. It was not a universal proposal for solidarity with all those who suffered from human rights abuses or from occupation. It was a proposal which singled out the academics of one state for unique punishment. It should have been obvious to decent people who wanted to help Palestine that a Jew-hunt was not just, would not be an effective remedy, and would surely license antisemitic ways of thinking.

Read the rest.

When one thinks of the West Bank and Gaza, one may think of many things: Palestinian national aspirations, terrorism, bad governance, rampaging gunmen, religious fundamentalism… I dunno, Olive trees? And way, way, way down at the very bottom of the list, if it’s there at all is HOT MAN-ON-MAN ACTION! Well, maybe that used to be the case, but not anymore! Turns out that despite appearances, the areas controlled by the Palestine Authority and Hamas are fleshpots extraordinaire that make San Francisco look like Orem, Utah. Scratch under the surface and you are sure to find gay orgies, man-boy love in the mosque and wives who are more than just coveted. This according to Khaled Abu Toameh of the Jerusalem Post who describes various sex scandals involving high ranking Palestinian leaders in both the West Bank and Gaza:

…Fatah men had been spying on several senior PA officials, some of whom were caught on tape having homosexual intercourse… A DVD distributed among a limited number of Hamas representatives features a former PA official having sex with another man. The disc, according to a Palestinian journalist in Gaza City, is being sold on the black market for NIS 20… According to one document, entitled “A Large Number of Homosexuals,” a number of wealthy and influential figures in the Gaza Strip had formed a “gang” for practicing homosexual intercourse … “Some of them were summoned for questioning and they admitted to having sexual intercourse with boys and adult males,” the document, dated May 12, 2005, stated … “Some of them had individual sex, while others preferred group sex. Some of them paid money for sex, while others performed sexual intercourse with males in front of their wives.” … The document described the homosexuals as a “very dangerous group” and warned that the phenomenon might spread to other parts of the Gaza Strip, adding that rival political factions could exploit the case to defame Fatah and “create chaos and confusion … “Another Hamas official said his men had uncovered three brothels that had been frequented by top Fatah officials in the Gaza Strip… In a bid to counter the Hamas campaign, Fatah members have published details about “sex scandals” involving Hamas activists… According to Fatah, a Hamas imam was recently caught having sex with a male minor in a mosque basement… In another incident, according to Fatah, a senior member of Hamas’s armed wing, Izaddin Kassam, was expelled from his refugee camp after he was caught having sex with a male colleague in a vehicle. And according to a report on a Fatah-controlled Web site, a Hamas man was caught naked together with his neighbor’s wife in her bedroom.

Well… at least they, unlike a certain President of Iran, admit to the existence of the dreaded homosexuals in their midst. Frankly, I think all these guys should just come out of the closet already – it might make them a little less aggressive or suicidal if they just come to terms with who they are. Finally we’ll all be able to go to Gaza for Gay Pride celebrations and attend the Ramallah Love Parade. Dude – we already have the Palestine is for Lovers t-shirts in both straight and gay versions!

Well boys, the world awaits your introduction to polite society – that’s going to be one fun cotillion where we will all celebrate your coming out. Till then, keep your gun well oiled and keep looking fabulous in those kicky scarves darlings!

UPDATE: At times like this, when there are contentious issues, it’s always good to ask WWJD? Meaning – What would James Kirchick of The New Republic have to say do when faced with such a story? The answer folks is right here:

That accusations of homosexuality are seen as such a grave issue in Palestinian society (and Muslim and Arab society in general) illustrates a plain lack of liberal values. For the Palestinians, homosexuality itself is redolent with corruption, otherwise Hamas and Fatah would not care to publicize these claims, whether they are true or false. We’ve come farther in the United States (but certainly not far enough), where the mere fact of being gay is no longer a bar to public office or high attainment in the corporate world, and wildly casting aspersions about someone’s private life like this is viewed as improper and crass. Clearly, the Palestinians have a bit farther to go.

Thanks James!

That was the original title of Ben Brofman’s piece in the latest issue of PresenTense titled “More Orgies, More Babies: A Modest Proposal.” Perhaps they should have stuck with Ben’s initial title suggestion – when you try to riff off of Jonathan Swift, you have some mighty big shoes to fill. Ben, begins his piece, as did Mr. Swift some 278 years ago, with a concise description of the problem. While Swift’s pamphlet, commonly referred to by it’s abbreviated title “A Modest Proposal,” discusses the urban poverty in Ireland occasioned by the Industrial revolution, Brofman talks about how the secular Jewish population is shrinking. Swift suggested that the Irish sell their babies as a culinary treat to wealthy Englishmen, while Brofman suggests mass institutionalized Jewish orgies utilizing defective birth control.

Of course massive orgies as suggested by Brofman would solve nothing – most of the women in the demographic at issue are on the pill and if they should suffer the misfortune of getting pregnant before they complete their college and professional degrees and get a fast track job to a life of material comfort, well, there is no doubt that they’d end that pregnancy in less time that it takes to say “I’ll take that Prada purse please! Thank you!” This is especially true if they aren’t sure who the father is. Single Motherhood and Jewish women? That’s even more outlandish an idea than mass orgies for Young Jews.

While Brofman’s piece lacks the sustained irony that Jonathan Swift is associated with, his was a nonetheless thought provoking article. What is most ironic about it is that essentially aren’t all programs created by the Organized Jewish Community for young adults designed to get the yiddles to bump booties and make babies of the mosaic persuasion? I mean yeah, they add a thin veneer of meaning and content to the programs, but aren’t these all kinda, sorta ritualized mating rituals? And like the Organized Jewish Community, Brofman’s obviously tongue in (ass?) cheek orgy proposal would fail to solve the problem because neither efforts answer the all important question that many young, secular Jews wrestle with – Why be Jewish to begin with?

Why indeed.

In New York City and craving a Saturday night experience that incorporates music, beer, wine, magazines, hummus, hookah and huts, as well as a venue that’s historical and on the verge of rejuvenation (reJEWvenation?)? Look no further…

SUCCOT IN THE CITY, a festival of fun sponsored by the historic Sixth Street Synagogue. Also known as the launch party for the new issue of PresenTense Magazine.

THIS SATURDAY NIGHT: 9:30p-12:30a
Held at and in conjunction with the Sixth Street Community Synagogue
(325 East 6th Street (between 1st and 2nd ave).

Great music, food, and drinks, all covered by the low cover price of:
$12 in advance at eastvillageshul.com
$15 at the door

The first hour, there’s a wine tasting! Throughout the party, there’s also He’Brew Pomegranate Ale! Sabra Salads! And new copies of the new issue of PresenTense, featuring innovative ideas, articles and essays on everything from the Israel Baseball League to the Case for Intermarriage!

It’s going to be Sukkahlicious!

Want to get in free? Volunteer to help us clean up. Contact Party Princess Dara Lehon at
daralehon@gmail.com.

Harvest festivals are always fun, and Sukkot creates not just a time to celebrate, but a place. Sukkot is a place in time and time in place. The holiday of Sukkot helps us experience G-d’s kindness to the Jewish people while in the desert during the Exodus from Egypt and celebrates the Fall harvest. Sukkot is during the harvest moon. We get out of doors and take in the outdoors. We don’t just talk about this kindness and blessing – we experience it by eating, living and even sleeping in a Sukkah for seven days and by blessing the Four Species — aka Lulav & Etrog.

The mitzvah—call it a command, call it an obligation, call it a calling— of dwelling, eating and spending time in the Sukkah is unique. The mitzvah of Sukkah encompasses every part of the body. Every limb and cell of the person is completely involved, surrounded and encompassed by the Sukkah. But just standing there in a sukkah won’t let the sukkatmosphere seep in.

Put a carpet down. Some comfy chairs. A table, a lamp. Make sure to hang some nice posters and wall decorations. Wear warm cloths. Put board games in the Sukkah, and use an inflatable bed that can easily be moved in the daytime to make room for guests and dining. Put in a stereo. TV & DVD to watch Ushpizin. You can use curtains to make doors. Hang a nice light from IKEA. Hang decorative lighting you can buy at places like Target to add pazaaz. Hang gourds. Don’t hang fruit that will rot or attract insects. Make a redneck wind-chime out of beer cans. Light candles. Sit. Breath. Drink in the holiness of the sukkah.

Once isn’t enough of a good thing. We always want more. Eat live thrive in a Sukkah everyday. When having of a meal in the Sukkah, or a snack you can make the blessing: Blessed are you Hashem, our G-d, King of all worlds, who has sanctified us with your mitzvos, and willed us to dwell in the Sukkah. (My translation of the essence of the blessing: Ba-ruch A-tah Ado-nai E-lo-hei-nu Me-lech Ha-olam Asher Kideshanu Bemitzvotav Vetzivanu Leshev Basukkah.)

And of course, if you are anywhere within driving distance of Long Beach, please join us for our celebrations, and have yourself a very wonderful festival!

I used to think that the guys that run Heeb Magazine were a bunch of douchebags. I was more often than not appalled by their smarmy, self congratulatory articles, their cliquish insider humor and their ethnocentrism presented in the guise of an oh-so-sophisticated world view.

Well – they’re still douchebags. Every last one of them. Oh sure, Photographer Seth Olenick is really friendly and a talented photographer, and David Kelsey is really passionate about everything, and Rebecca Wiener is a very very serious writer and Josh Neuman is… is… very astute in that way that only Yekkes can be. But still. Douchebags.

And yet… Heeb has grown and evolved by leaps and bounds. Everything gets better and better. So yeah, grab the latest issue of Heeb from the newsstand, or subscribe. The content often riles me up BUT it is always compelling. Of course, that’s not all of it. They just had to invade MY domain. I’m talking about the Internet. HeebMagazine.com has been running for a number of months now and it contains a blog section that’s pretty good. But was that enough? Noooo! They also just released the Heeb 100:

They’re young, smart and innovative… and oh yeah, they also happen to be Jewish. No, we’re not talking about the staff at Heeb Magazine; we’re talking about the second installment of the Heeb Hundred, a roundup of 100 people you need to know about. They are bloggers and newspaper publishers, comic artists and novelists, chefs and fashion designers, and while they’ve already got stellar resumes, we believe that the best is yet to come from each of them

I don’t agree with all the choices but the content was crisp, the descriptions were bite sized morsels of written yumminess that had me scrambling to Google to find out more information about the chosen yids AND they didn’t make too many obvious choices, ie “This is Shlomo. He’s from New Jersey and writes a Jewish blog (!) that uses foul language (!!) and is representative of the New Jew movement (!!!).” They’re all Jew-ish but successful and interesting (for the most part) in their own right. I spent 2 hours going through the site and I’m going back. Might I recommend you do the same thing?

And remember, Jewlicious is running a FREE trip to Israel this winter with the support of those shmeggeges at Heeb Magazine. There’s still time to register so if you haven’t – get cracking! Visit Oranim at israelfree.com, register, and choose the Jewlicious trip to get in on this fun time party action! Greatest booty shakin’ experience since cousin Marvin’s Bar Mitzvah when Aunt Fayge got down to Bootsy Collins. Good times, good times.

The free trip to Israel is a gift of Taglit-birthright israel.

The Feast of the Tabernacles, the Feast of Ingathering or just simply the Hut Holiday, Sukkot in Jerusalem is certainly a Joyous occasion. Coming on the heels of Yom Kippur, Sukkot is a celebration of thanksgiving, community and eating. And lets not forget the lulav and etrog – the four species, namely the lulav (date palm frond), hadass (bough of a myrtle tree), aravah (willow branch) (these three are actually bound together and collectively referred to as the lulav) and the etrog (a citron, a lemon-like citrus fruit) which one is commanded to grasp and shake on each of the seven days of Sukkot. Sukkot is also celebrated by building and decorating a hut and actually living in it (yes muffti, married couples are even expected to have relations in there) but despite that, the lulav is my favorite and most meaningful part of the holiday.

Why? Well let’s say having a scent represents good deeds, and let’s say having a taste represents Jewish knowledge or Torah study – in this way the lulav symbolizes the unity of the Jewish people as follows:

• The lulav has taste but no smell, symbolizing those who know the rules of Judaism but do not practice them.
• The hadass has a good smell but no taste, symbolizing those who do good deeds but do not have knowledge of Judaism.
• The aravah has neither taste nor smell, symbolizing those who never study Torah and never do good deeds.
• The etrog has both a good taste and a good smell, symbolizing those who know the rules of Judaism and apply them in their lives.

Thus we are symbolically all united in the service of God. Even Muffti whether he likes it or not is included as part of this equation. It’s kinda sweet in a soft and mushy PC way. I love it! Anyways, I snapped some pics at the Shuk’s annual Four Species Market. Click below to ch-ch-ch-ch-ch-check it out!

www.flickr.com Jewlicious’ Sukkot 5768 Jerusalem photoset

There are some things that just shouldn’t be done.

Milli Vanilli reunion tours. Guantanamo commemorative snap bracelets. “Concentration Camp” Lego sets.

And, if you’re Giuliani, having a “$9.11 for Rudy” fundraiser where you charge a minimum campaign donation of $9.11. The AP brings us the story that makes even the most avid fan of merchandising and materialism come to the verge of gagging:

The International Association of Fire Fighters accused Republican Rudy Giuliani of exploiting the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks because a supporter is holding a $9.11-per-person fundraiser for the presidential candidate.

The union — already a vocal critic of Giuliani’s — said Tuesday that the fundraiser’s “$9.11 for Rudy” theme is an abuse of the image and symbols of the 2001 attacks.

“It is nothing short of disrespectful to the legacy of the thousands of civilians and 343 brave firefighters who died at ground zero,” IAFF president Harold Schaitberger said.

The event was scheduled to take place tomorrow at the home of a Giuliani supporter in California, but the Giuliani campaign is distancing itself from the event. Giuliani campaign officials say that they had nothing to do with the event, but the event’s host said that all “$9.11″ event planning was checked out with the Giuliani campaign HQ.

Using the September 11th tragedy like this is horrible. Covering up such use of September 11th for commercial gain is likewise deplorable. Who brands themselves exclusively with a day of national tragedy? Is this really his only selling point?

So much for “America’s Mayor”.

Ha’aretz is reporting that Jerusalem will be constructing a sukkah made entirely of candy:

The Jerusalem municipality and the Ariel municipal company are planning to build a sukkah made entirely of candy to mark the Jewish holiday of Sukkot later this week.

The sukkah will be built in Jerusalem’s Safra Square and will be named “HaSukkah-Rya”, a play on words meaning hard candy.

Two tons of candy and candy-shaped ornaments will be used in the construction of the 1,000 square meter sukkah. The lighting will be in the shape of candy and the walls will be covered with candy and bubble gum. Various sweets will be offered to guests free of charge.

Just like many good American Jews, I have always been slightly envious of the kids who got to make gingerbread houses on Christmas. But isn’t this going a little overboard?

Muffti and his fellow posters don’t do this so often, but this is intended as a bit of a question. Muffti’s been thinking about the ethics of inviting Ahmadinejad: on the one hand, the intellectual function and value of it is fairly obvious: Universities have, as part (but not nearly all) of their proper function, to throw a light on interesting and controversial issues in order to find, as best they can, truth by the method they hold most dear: reason. To that end, its useful to invite those you disagree with and Ahmadinejad is clearly someone most around here disagree with. And what better way to demonstrate academia’s commitment to the value of free speech then letting such a person speak.

On the other hand there is a political-moral dimension. Don’t give people like Ahmadinejad a podium which legitimates them. Don’t act as though holocaust denying, terrorist funding, misogynistic homophobic people have positions that we feel it is legitimate to debate. Furthermore, Universities have to be and should be somewhat selective about who they invite – Columbia isn’t rushing to invite crazy homeless people in New York who mutter about being abducted by aliens simply so they can expose their views to academic scrutiny, are they?
(more…)

Politically Incorrect with David Kelsey
Over at the Kvetcher, our buddy David Kelsey put together a list of questions he would have liked to ask Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad had he had the opportunity to do so. I share these with you because, well, because David makes me laugh:

1) According to what you have heard in your circles, what are some of the better Persian restaurants in the city?
2) Is Jewish-Persian food the same as regular Persian food? Because I didn’t like Jewish Persian food all that much when I had it.
3) I find Persian women very attractive, but have heard they are often hairy. Is this true, or is it a Moroccan slander?
4) I have met Zoroastrians, and they seemed tolerant and quite interesting. Much more so than the run-of-the-mill monotheist (yawn). Do you ever think maybe you guys made a mistake becoming a Muslim nation? Why did you feel you needed to become more like the Arabs? Do you ever have buyer’s remorse?
5) What words of encouragement do you have for New York’s intactivist community?

No comment, at least from me…

Over at DailyKos, one particularly audacious blogger put the question to the public: who would you rather be American president, Bush or Ahmadenijad?

Well, the answer was Bush. But only by about 10 percentage points this morning. With a hat tip to LGF, the results this morning looked like this:

As of right now, Bush has Ahmadinejad by about 26 percentage points.

Some Kos-bloggers who “voted” for Ahmadinejad were quick to point out why they did so:

I voted for Mahmoud in this poll, mostly because he is obviously evil and thus less dangerous than GWB, who is at least as evil but for years hid that evil by using his “aw, shucks” persona as a blind.

Better evil in the open than evil wearing a friendly (and very stupid) face…

I’ll take Mahmoud before George. It’s not because he is any less despicable than Dubya, it’s just that he does not have supreme power over his military.

Were I to be placed in such a damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-move-to-Canada scenario, I think I would have no other option but to resort to doing a write-in: Kanye West 2008.

David Horovitz from the Jerusalem Post on Ahmadinejad’s Columbia speech:

But it wasn’t all big lies from Ahmadinejad. He didn’t deny his determination to question the fundamental facts of the Holocaust. And he didn’t deny his regime’s strategic hostility to the existence of Israel – “the Zionist regime” which, along with the now disappeared apartheid South Africa, was specifically exempted from the readiness he otherwise declared “to negotiate with all countries.”

Indeed, he predictably airbrushed the Jews out of Middle East history and misrepresented the Jewish nation’s claim to a homeland in Palestine as deriving solely from Jewish suffering in Europe under the Nazis. He then dismissed that false claim as unfair to the Palestinians. And, finally, he specified a “solution” to the Palestinian conflict that would constitute the elimination of the Jewish state.

And he was applauded. He was applauded when complaining that he had been given a critical reception by the university’s president. He was applauded at the end of his exposition on Palestine. There was even admiring laughter when he smoothly parried the demand for a “yes or no” answer to the question of whether he sought the elimination of Israel as a Jewish state.

There was applause for his assertion that “we do not believe in nuclear weapons, period.” And there was sustained applause for him at the close of the event, after he had wished peace, brotherhood and friendship upon us all. Only when he strayed to assert that Iran doesn’t “have homosexuals, like your country,” did he misjudge his audience and attract some booing.

The president of Iran, a nation disseminating a perverted Islamist ideology that obligates the indiscriminate killing of non-believers, a country directly encouraging the deaths of American soldiers right now in Iraq, came to a prominent institute of American learning. Canny, well-prepared and sharp, he emerged, there should be no doubt, with greater legitimacy than when he went in, and thus strengthened his standing back home and his capacity to engineer more harm.

But perhaps saddest and most worrying of all, much of his audience was not only deluded and swayed by the big lies, but was evidently unperturbed by some of the despicable truths he vouchsafed as well.

Read all of it.

Gaydamak visits Machaneh Yehuda
Russian born billionaire Philanthropist, Businessman, Sports Mogul, Champion of Sderot, Humanitarian, Diplomat, International Fugitive and Politician Arcadi Gaydamak visited Machaneh Yehuda (Central Market of Jerusalem) and had lunch at famed eatery, Rachmo. There he discussed his future political aspirations. Gaydamak has strong ties to Jerusalem – he is the sponsor of the Hapoel Jerusalem basketball team and the full owner of the Beitar Jerusalem Soccer team. Last February he started a political party to run in the Knesset called Social Justice which will run in alliance with Likud. Gaydamak has no plans to run for Knesset himself though – he currently has his sights set on the Jerusalem Mayor’s office – when I asked him about his chances of winning, he answered “I will be the next Mayor of Jerusalem.”

Judging by his reception at the shuk, one might understand his confidence. Usually grumpy people stopped him and wished him a chatimah tovah and a happy New Year. When he entered the stall area, the merchants started spontaneously singing a ditty from a Cell Phone company commercial he has recently starred in (see video below). One guy even gave him a Pineapple! A friggin Pineapple!! You know how expensive those things are?? And those fuckers never give anything good away! Like Arcadi really needed your Pineapple… But the predominantly Sephardic crowd at the Shuk are surprisingly easy to please – like a puppy who has been regularly beaten, show them a little attention and they’ll be your little bitches forever. I mean Menachem Begin showed up at the Shuk once like a million years ago, wearing a Kippah and to this day there are still images of him adorning many a stall.

Gaydamak has relatively unlimited resources and, as an outsider, he can ride the wave of discontent that many feel towards the current political establishment, which they see as corrupt and distant. Will this be enough to make up for the fact that Gaydamak doesn’t speak Hebrew and that he is an internationally wanted fugitive who has to travel on an Angolan diplomatic passport in order to avoid arrest? Well – he’s wanted in France so like, who cares? And even with his checkered past, he is still viewed as a breath of fresh air in a stale and moribund political arena. Out of sheer boredom I actually look forward to calling him Mr. Mayor. Besides, Gaydamak I can pronounce. Lupiolanski? Try saying that 3 times fast – you’ll sprain your jaw guaranteed.

This is Gaydamak’s video for Pelephone wherein he says that he’s tired of buying stuff and has had it with capitalism. Cute.

So there I am rifling through the Israeli online newspapers and I stumble across the “About Me” section in the Jerusalem Post. This is a place where one can upload one’s image, write a few notes about oneself and hope to god that people find you attractive. Or at least worthy of some positive comments.

I read some of these bios with interest. Honestly, I also read some bios with sheer boredom. The comments were generally lame

I was pleased, however, to find that our own ck filled out an “About Me” page, picture and all. He’s so sweet on there, telling us that the party for which he’ll vote in the next elections will be, uh, the Pantherim Ha Schorim (the black panthers). There’s no mention of his newly found passion for guns.

But this post isn’t about Dave. Nope. This post is about Shana Katz. Shana had the courage to post an About Me page, and I consider it an unqualified success that justifies the entire Jerusalem Post effort. Look at that punim. Look at her educational goals. Look at her family goals. She’s attractive, traditional, a graduate student, likes cats, likes bikinis, and probably has a South African accent that will make an Englishman drool.

Jewlicious people. Somebody please marry them soon…

As per the JTA:

Marcel Marceau, who escaped deportation to a Nazi death camp and went on to become a mime legend, has died… His former assistant, Emmanuel Vacca, announced Marceau’s death on French radio Sunday but did not provide details. Marceau had died the day before in Paris at the age of 84… Marceau was born Marcel Mangel to Jewish parents in Strasbourg, France. He changed his name to Marceau to hide his Jewish origins when the Nazis marched into eastern France and he fled with family members. His father was sent to Auschwitz in 1944 and did not survive… Marceau and his brother Alain worked with the French Resistance to protect Jewish children… As a mime, Marceau was best known for his onstage persona Bip, a sad and chalk-faced clown who wore a stovepipe hat adorned with a red flower. Among his many other characters were a peevish waiter, a lion tamer and an old woman knitting…

His inspiration was Charlie Chaplin, and Marceau would inspire countless performers, notably Michael Jackson, who borrowed the “moonwalk” from the mime’s “Walking Against the Wind” sketch.

The BBC reports his daughter Camile saying that he will likely be buried in Paris’s famous Pere Lachaise cemetery. I’d like to say something kinda funny because he was a French mime after all. But then he had to go and survive Auschwitz and now I just don’t feel like being funny.

This is NOT a Jewlicious Action Flick
After going through a series of necessary and understandable but nonetheless very annoying bureaucratic hurdles, I find myself today a gun owner. When I lived in Canada, I never had any interest in gun ownership. I applauded as the Federal government added increasing barriers between those who sought to own firearms and the firearms themselves. I looked at my neighbors to the south and the havoc caused by the right to bear arms enshrined in the 2nd Amendment to the Constitution, and had no envy of their liberal gun ownership laws. Quite the contrary, I was often shocked by the power of the NRA and some of their seemingly insane policies.

This was all, of course, in keeping with my general political disposition which I felt to be decidedly Liberal. I believed in and benefited from socialized healthcare, socialized higher education and a benevolent government that created a social safety net beneath which few if any citizens, no matter how dire their circumstances, ever found themselves. Other Liberal values followed suit – women’s equality, a woman’s right to choose, gay rights, aboriginal rights, religious tolerance, racial equality, environmental protection etc. My family belonged to an Orthodox synagogue and while some of the values espoused by politicians on the left of center did not exactly jibe with our religious values, the perspective that sought to protect the underdog and the disadvantaged resonated far more with us than those values held by politicians on the right side of the political spectrum.

Moving to Israel threw a lot of that into disarray. Here it seems, it doesn’t matter what you believe in terms of domestic policy – ideological orientation is determined solely on the basis of your opinion regarding the Middle East conflict. Thus Benjamin Netanyahu of the Likud party is considered a right winger more for his hawkish defense policies than for his supply side economics. Yossi Beilin is best known for his involvement in the Oslo and Geneva Accords and the Israel-Palestinian Peace process. The fact that domestically he is considered a soft Capitalist did not prevent him from being elected chairman of the left-wing Meretz-Yachad party – he just never discusses his domestic agenda in public.

And then there’s me! True, I am a recent gun owner. And I believe in a strong defense policy in order to maintain the security and viability of the State of Israel. But I still believe in values I held in Canada. I hate Ayn Rand. I hate Social Darwinism. I think trickle down economics is idiotic. I believe that the wealthy ought to share in the social well being of the society that allows them to achieve their wealth, I do not consider taxation a form of theft, I would never vote for a party on the right, I believe in strong gun control laws everywhere, I believe in the equality of all citizens regardless of race and creed, I believe in the separation of Church and State etc. Despite all that, in the eyes of some – my position on the Middle East conflict – my support of the Security Barrier, my refusal to divide Jerusalem, my support of surgical pre-emptive action against suspected terrorists – these things alone make me a right wing loon on par with Kahanists and right wing elements of the Republican party.

So the question is – is it wrong for me to think these people are idiots, badly in need of a refresher course in PoliSci 101? Can one not be a Liberal and still believe in a strong and secure Israel?

hat tip: LGF

Obama Girl’s latest video is a tribute to American servicemen in Iraq and Afghanistan. But more than that, her tribute was non-partisan as the video also featured Giuliani Girl and the Romney Girls (but no RoshHashana Girl???) – all wearing hot shorts of course. Now who can take offense to that?

Note to William Levin: I have a great idea for your next project – maybe you can get the Jewish Outreach Institute* to sponsor it – ready? “I like a Goy!” – I even have some of the lyrics already:

You know the guys… I like to please
Doin’ us proud with their bacon and cheese.
I like a Goy. I like a Goy.
I Like Mayonnaise and I cannot lie
I feel at ease with a non-Jewish guy

Call me Will. I even know where we can get hot-shorts at wholesale prices!

*Disclaimer: This is meant to be funny. While I don’t encourage mixed marriages I also do not encourage ostracizing mixed couples. We should all strive to be as friendly, welcoming and inclusive as possible.

First they unnecessarily tasered a Jewish University of Florida student – you’re all familiar with that story of course. Now comes news that members of the Ocala Florida PD roughed up and tasered a guy who wouldn’t drop his Koran on the floor. Geez. A little sensitivity training would go a long way I think. In fact more training for Florida cops, period. All charges of resisting arrest against Jeffrey Shields, 49 of Ocala have been dropped and 4 OPD officers are being investigated by Internal Affairs. Hat tip to Pierre Tristam who reported the story first.

… and saved in the Database, and blessed for goodness and health. May your RAM and your hard-drive function keep on ticking. May you always stay connected to the network, have a signal, be compatible. May your software be up to date, and may your backups be intact. May you not become corrupted or infected. And may you be sealed in the Book of Life.

And now a story from Reb Shlomo:

It’s a beautiful story. The Chiddushe HaRim, the old Gerer Rebbe, before Rosh Hoshanah, received a letter from one of the Chassidim, and this is what he said, “Heilage Zeisa Rebbe, my Holy Master, please let me know… please tell me… please enlighten me… Which is the most important prayer of Rosh Hoshana and Yom Kippur, the High Holidays? The Chiddushe HaRim answered him back and this is what he said, “I want you to know, I want you to know, I receive so many letters that I could never answer them. But I hasten to answer your letter, because your letter was wet with tears, when I received it. So I hasten to answer you.” And he says, “Please do know that every prayer, every prayer is important. Every prayer reaches heaven. And the heavens are open. But I want you to know, I want you to know, when it comes to this prayer, I want you to concentrate, with the deepest, deepest depths of your heart, of your soul, of everything you have. Because this is all there is to Rosh Hoshana. This is what we are praying for on the first day of the year, and the last day of the last year. “Vayaydah kal pa-ule kee Atah p’alto. And every creation will know that You created him.) To know that there is one G-d. Let the whole world know. Let the whole world know.

Dear Mayor Bloomberg,

On Sunday your city will be hosting Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, Dictator of Iran, one of the most evil men on earth. Just a peek at his portfolio: Ahmadinejad has crushed his people and opponents, kept Americans hostage in 1979, and promises to wipe Israel off the map. His actions and his words speak volumes about his intentions to build and use nukes. He sends guns, ammo, land mines, missiles, money and bombs to Hamas, Hizbollah, and those killing American soldiers in Iraq. He is a murderous madman like Hitler, Stalin, and Mao.

Imagine the suffering that could have been avoided if anyone of them had been apprehended, tried and sentenced before they were allowed to institute their evil plans?

Do the right thing— and the world will thank you. It will raise your profile and your moral standing. It will be a mitzvah.

America wants this madman off the streets.

Sincerely,

Rabbi Yonah

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Jewish Theological Seminary has created a “teaching” website for the high holy days and Sukkot with some interesting images, documents and artifacts that relate to this special time of year. It also has interesting functionality that allows visitors to zoom in and read ancient manuscripts like Bar Kochba preparing for Sukkot and then leap forward 1900 years or so and zoom in to Sandy Koufax’s jersey.

Highly recommended.

Gmar chatima tova to all of our readers and posters!

What a crock of Bullshit…
You hear the phrase “Chatimah Tovah And Please Forgive Me for Anything I May Have Done To You… ” a lot this time of year. Before Yom Kippur, people use this phrase in order to seek forgiveness from their friends and acquaintances. Unfortunately, it’s meaningless. In order to get forgiveness, you need to acknowledge your sin, ask for forgiveness and make proper restitution if necessary. You need face the person you sinned against and specify the sin. It’s not fun. It’s not meant to feel good. It hurts and makes you feel like shit – but at least when it’s over, you have done the right thing and it will hopefully result in your being a better person.

I was reminded of this as I read Marty Beckerman’s latest piece in Jewcy – My Failed Quest for Forgiveness – A Yom Kippur post-mortem, where Marty admits to his sins and actually asks for forgiveness from the aggrieved parties to mixed success, but with a refreshing modern twist:

If the person refuses to forgive us—which is virtually guaranteed if we apologize on an anonymous blog—we have to ask again on two separate occasions so that God will give us credit for trying.Maimonides says it’s best to repent in front of witnesses, but in true Generation Y fashion, I sent the majority of my apologies via Facebook’s messaging system. Here are the results of my experiment in groveling for absolution.

Go on. Read the story – and watch as Marty Beckerman no less, teaches even orthodox Jews something new.

Oh and if I committed a sin against you – too bad. I’ll take my chances with Gehena because it’s around the corner from where I live. A 10 minute walk and a 5 minute bike ride – that’s a friggin cakewalk! but do have an easy fast and a meaningful Yom Kippur.