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I’m not sure who started it, but at some point people on the coast of the Baltic Sea and the Northsea must have decided, “Hey, that fish looks like it wants to get pickled and shipped to the inner land in large wooden barrels.” (Of course, you have to imagine that line being uttered in Dutch, Frisian or Polish.)

Pickled herring quickly became a staple in Central Europe – not only aboard European ships travelling the world. It was an affordable saltwater fish that, once pickled, shipped and stored comparatively well, enriching the diets of Christians during Lent or Fridays, adding flavour and much needed protein to the stews of the pauper in times when a kilo of meat at the butcher’s was 10% of an average worker’s monthly income, and, as an added benefit, helping people handle large quantities of alcohol.
It’s hardly surprising that herring, despite its distinct flavour that you either love or loathe, soon was incorporated in “traditional” dishes even in areas where there usually weren’t any saltwater fish available. And since Jewish cooks typically adopted the recipes of their respective environments and the majority of Jews used to be poor, herring ended up on many a Jewish plate as well.

Many traditional herring recipes consist of ingredients that either were victuals aboard ships as they kept edible for a longer while or stored well through the winter months.

As I promised Kelsey to link to him in a post, this diaspora recipe is for you, my friend:
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Look, over the years here on Jewlicious, we’ve had some uncomfortable debates about aspects of halacha – Jewish law – that to some of us appeared outdated and WRONG, and to others among us appeared to be the way things are and have to remain. Among flash-points such as what it means to keep the sabbath, what, if anything, is the Jewish value of Conservative and Reform Judaism other than to subsidize Orthodox Jews, whether converts who converted in movements other than Orthodox are actually Jewish, whether children of Jewish fathers and non-Jewish mothers who identify themselves as Jewish are indeed Jewish and should visitors at the Western Wall be segregated or divided into the haves (men) and have-nots (women), there was one particular topic that always raised my ire: agunot.

To those who don’t know, according to Jewish law, when a man wants to divorce a woman, he gives her a “get” which is his consent to be divorced. Without that “get,” the woman is not considered divorced and may not remarry in Jewish tradition. She is an agunah (agunot is the plural form). If she does remarry, it would most certainly not be considered valid by Orthodox rabbis and the children would be considered bastards which carries all sorts of negative connotations. In other words, this is a rabbinic sanction for a man to have extensive leverage over the woman who despises him sufficiently to seek a divorce from him. To give up the “get,” he can ask for money, sex, favors and all sorts of other goodies because until he says the magic words, the woman is “his” (literally, since that is what the traditional ketubah – marriage contract – stipulates).

Needless to say, this happens all the time. It’s actually even worse for some women because the husband so hates the wife that he does not grant her the “get” under any circumstances. She waits for years, usually her finite child-bearing years, hoping that he’ll release her, but very often he will move on with his life and out of spite refuse to grant her the “get.”

The rabbis know all of this, of course. In Israel, they have the luxury of controlling civil laws pertaining to marriage and divorce so the issue of receiving the “get” takes on even greater importance since the woman cannot even get around the country’s civil administration unless the husband grants a “get.” Over the years, some rabbis have tried different solutions. Some have tried pre-nuptial agreements, but the rabbis who control the rabbinate have rejected most of these agreements because the man, according to tradition, must come to the decision of his own volition and not because of coercion (Get it? He can coerce his wife any way he wants, but he cannot be coerced). Other rabbis send tough guys over to the guy’s house where they are supposed to apply, um, pressure on him. That’s supposed to work, but often it doesn’t because this is a form of coercion and unless the guy is seriously afraid that somebody is going to risk going to jail over this, chances are he won’t budge.

All of this is preamble to what this post is really about: how well halacha works!

From the Jerusalem Post:

A 50-year-old man from the Jerusalem area divorced for the 11th time, a new Israeli record for Jews, according to an announcement released Monday by the Rabbinical Court Administration.

The man, whose divorces were performed both in Israel and abroad in accordance with Halacha, said his custom is to divorce his wives every two years and look for a new bride immediately after.

“I throw out a hook and the fish come on their own,” the man reportedly said.

In his latest marriage, which also lasted two years, the two sides split the debts the husband had accrued. The woman claimed her husband had promised to work but ended up living off her assets and those of her parents.

See? What did I tell you? Halacha works! This guy gives a “get” on schedule and does not leave his wives as agunot, not even once out of eleven chances.

It’s good to be a man.

Psssh. Production Standards, eh?

Leadel7 is a project of our friends over at Leadel.net. It’s a weekly video-podcast thing produced by our own Leah Stern and a group of students over at IDC College in Herzeliyah. Each week’s episode explores a number of issues and is informed by the crew’s internet savvy and Jew surfin’ ways. Host Andrea Cohen is funny, engaging and, well, kinda hot. I can say that because this is my blog and despite the fact that Leadel advertises here, they can’t tell me what to do. They are not the king of me. I am the king of me.

Speaking of which – they do have this contest going on. Basically, you send in a video of someone Jewish doing something cool and you can win all kinds of kick ass prizes from an MacBook Pro to iPod Touches, etc. The contest is co-sponsored by the European Jewish Community, the ROI Community, JewTube and us – though they still can’t tell me what to do. They are looking more for compelling content than technical prowess or famous people so use whatever camera you have handy, edit the clip, don’t edit the clip – it’s up to you! But yes. I digress.

Is this Politically Correct?

How politically incorrect can the Israeli cartoonists behind Ahmed and Salim get? Not so much – in this holiday video, their targets are terrorists, who in the pantheon of political correctness rank just above straight white men in terms of acceptable subjects of off color humor. Count all the pop culture references they managed to cram into a 4 minute video, from Peanuts to It’s a Wonderful Life. Sigh. Life was so much simpler before the Internet when Israel had just one TV channel…

If you liked Ahmed and Salim’s holiday video, you’ll also like this one where they take the piss out of Israel’s obsession with really bad reality TV shows – and we all know that taking the piss out of Israelis, not Jews (”figdy Ibrahim Foxmaniyeh!!”) but Israelis is perfectly acceptable to the PC police.

This post is for the ladies.

“Let’s face it, gentlemen. Women in all cultures all over the world have at all times loved wearing jewellery. I haven’t managed to change that about my wife and you won’t change that about your wives or girlfriends either.”

Truer words have never been spoken in an exegesis class. Whenever a former professor of mine expressed that sentiment, the male part of the audience groaned, smirked in resignation or nodded knowingly. The female part of the audience though would flash a beaming smile and reach for or look at whatever piece of jewellery they were wearing that day.

The female fascination with jewellery was already acknowledged – and to no little extent – complained about in biblical scripture. (This gives us a good idea that while god as such is believed to transcend all boundaries of sex, the authors of the respective passages were undoubtedly male. ) Let’s look at a few examples (quoted from the New International Version):

Then the servant brought out gold and silver jewelry and articles of clothing and gave them to Rebekah; he also gave costly gifts to her brother and to her mother. (Gen 24:53)

Sounds good. The more, the better.

So I told them, ‘Whoever has any gold jewelry, take it off.’ Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf!” (Ex 32:24)

So they kept the silver jewellery, eh?

All who were willing, men and women alike, came and brought gold jewelry of all kinds: brooches, earrings, rings and ornaments. They all presented their gold as a wave offering to the LORD. (Ex 35:22)

Please note that not everybody was willing to sacrifice their jewellery, hence the defining relative clause.

Does a maiden forget her jewelry, a bride her wedding ornaments? Yet my people have forgotten me, days without number.

See who compares themself to jewellery here, acknowledging the importance of jewellery to women?

Now, the fine art of gold- and silversmithing has had a long tradition among Jewish craftsmen, and again, biblical scripture acknowledges this:

Then Moses said to the Israelites, “See, the LORD has chosen Bezalel son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and he has filled him with the Spirit of God, with skill, ability and knowledge in all kinds of crafts – to make artistic designs for work in gold, silver and bronze, to cut and set stones, to work in wood and to engage in all kinds of artistic craftsmanship. And he has given both him and Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, the ability to teach others. He has filled them with skill to do all kinds of work as craftsmen, designers, embroiderers in blue, purple and scarlet yarn and fine linen, and weavers—all of them master craftsmen and designers. (Ex 35:30-35)

The history of Jews working in gold- and silversmithing shows that there was no Ashkenazi / Sefardi divide; all over the areas where Jews had settled, they earned high reputations as skilled gold- and silversmiths. Even where the guild-system theoretically banned them from pursuing their trade, Jewish gold- and silversmiths often were in high enough demand that exceptions were made.

Now, I assume I need not go into detail here about what you certainly already know about Jewish jewellers, jewellery designers and the history of diamond cutting and trade (I do recommend a visit to the Diamond Museum in Antwerp though should you be in the vicinity; the exhibition is well-organised, partly interactive, and combines historical elements with the “science” of diamonds, moral implications of diamond mining and trade and, of course, jewellery design), so let’s cut this short.

As for me, of course I love jewellery. I mean I love, love, love jewellery. Blame that on early childhood imprinting; one of my aunts, who then wasn’t married and didn’t have a family of her own yet, was a jeweller, so it might come as no surprise that even though I was barely a few hours old and didn’t even call any decent outfits my own yet (I know you’re only a newborn for so long, but man, does this stuff look dull), I was already the owner of a gold necklace, and that one was to be the first piece in a collection that has been growing steadily over the years.

My interest in antique jewellery only developed some 16 years later when my grandfather gave me an old ring that had been made by an uncle of his. That uncle used to be the finest jeweller in Düsseldorf during the Art Nouveau and pre-WW2 era, when jewellery design experienced unprecedented creativity and freedom of expression, involving new techniques and inspirations from all over the world.

One of those inspirations was the chandelier earring, which bases its design on the hamsa. Thus real chandeliers have always got five dangling ornaments arranged like the fingers on a hand / a symmetric hamsa (as opposed to plain dangling earrings or earrings wth three dangling ornaments, which are called gypsy earrings). Chandelier earrings flatter most facial shapes. Now that the party season is full ahead of us, chandeliers are a great choice of jewellery to complement your outfit with. Their lustre makes your eyes sparkle even if you aren’t feeling your best. Another positive side-effect is that with earrings three to five inches long, you automatically stand tall as you don’t want the earrings to brush against your shoulders. So, if you’re not certain whether to go for chandeliers or a necklace, chandeliers are a safe pick.

Of course, the hamsa is not exclusively Israeli and its use as an amulet likely pre-dates Islam and Judaism even, but anybody who’s ever been to Israel knows that there’s hardly any souvenir booth that doesn’t sell hamsa-shaped items.

Years back, I got my notoriously clumsy sister a hamsa pendant when I was in Eilat.
She lost it the following week.

While Christians are left celebrating Christmas, us Jews are left … eating Chinese food. What else is a Jew to do on a day when the country shuts down? Go see a movie, and scarf down some delicious & healthy MSG.

In honor of our relatively new found tradition, I’ve compiled a list of as many Kosher Chinese Restaurants around the world as I could find.

CLICK HERE FOR:
Kosher Chinese Restaurants · 洁净中国餐馆 · מסעדות סיניות כשרות

It was widely reported in the press, that Carter asked for forgiveness from the Jews, and I don’t forgive him. The former president, and master of distortions, wrote to JTA: “As I would have noted at Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, but which is appropriate at any time of the year, I offer an Al Het for any words or deeds of mine that may have done so.”

In order to seek forgiveness, one has to acknowledge the mistakes that one made and resolve to repair the damage caused. If we Jews don’t forgive Carter, God certainly never will. As our tradition teaches — God will only forgive one who has made peace with those that they wronged. And Jimmy, you have a long, long way to go.

Carter’s admission that he has caused the Jewish community harm might work in confession, but doesn’t work with on Yom Kippur, and it doesn’t work with me.

Carter admitted no specific mistakes. He offered no way of repairing the damage caused by his irresponsible accusations.

I personally heard Carter tell an audience of 3k students at UC Irvine, to the applause of the administration and students, that the US Congress was “in the pocket” of the Jews.

How many other college student audiences around the country heard the same accusations? How many books did he publish accusing Israel of things that have no basis in fact? How many times has he appeared on TV demonizing Israel and backing Hamas?

In order for me to forgive Carter he has to admit to his distortions and lies and publicly renounce his books and speeches. Carter needs to return money to anti-Semitic Middle Eastern countries that back his center. He needs to replace Habitat for Humanity with Hadassah. He needs to go on Birthright Israel. He needs to listen to Matisyahu. He needs to watch G-d Cast, read The Forward, spend the winter in Miami. He needs to study Judaism with Rabbi Telushkin, and volunteer for Challah for Hunger. We need to see Jimmy Carter crusading against the humanitarian track record of Hizbollah, Hamas, and Fatah, and doing brunch at Jeff’s Gourmet Sausage on Pico. While he is on this apology tour, he needs to appear at every campus where he defamed Israel, and give speeches urging that Muslim extremist recruiting groups like the MSU and MSA be banned permanently. He needs to learn Hebrew, spend Shabbat at Beit Jewlicious, and sit at David Abitbol’s feet and learn about the expulsion of North African Jews, Sephardic Jewish culture, and eat chumous. And that is just for starters.

There is a perfect venue for this rapprochement to begin with the Jewish community; the perfect place for Carter to ask forgiveness, renounce his former ways, and promise to live a life free from anti-Semitism and criticism of Israel — Jewlicious Festival 6.0.

Friday Night at Jewlicious Jimmy, stand up in front of a hundreds of young Jews, ask forgiveness, break bread with us, and tell us how you will attempt to undo the vast damage you have wrought.

A First for Israel!

Ynet (Hebrew) just reported that Israeli band The Carsitters, recently returned from a European tour, are going to be the first Israeli band to have tracks available for console game Rockband2. Soon, you will be able to visit the Rock Band store, download the tracks (including “All Eyes on Me”) and rock out in your basement with your friends as if you were a cool power rock band from Tel Aviv. OK lets be honest, you’ll never be as cool as ROI alum and lead vocalist Noa Margalit, or frontman Yoav Rosenthal, or drummer Yoni Ohayon. Maybe you might be almost as cool as bassist Etay Maor. Maybe. But that’s the best you can hope for. At least you can always dream – you, your buddies and your console of choice. Here’s the Carsitters doing All Eyes on Me for Taglit Birthright Israel:

Remember that blast from the past? You can see a more band focused version here or you can see their latest vid “I Don’t Mind.” Either way, the Carsitters are pioneers, using console gaming to get the word out on Israeli music. OK so they’re not clearing swamps but what the fuck are you doing to present a more realistic image of Israel to the world? Yeah, that’s what I thought.

OK, so Shalom TV’s online series, depicting the lives of Jewish singles is NOT The West Wing. But my friend S_, a single, Jewess in New York did describe it as “spot on!” So at least in that respect it satisfies our voyeuristic urges while still being kind of entertaining. So far the makers have thrown in interesting plot twists in every episode and I continue to be amazed by the fact that I find myself entertained! Good job Shalom TV and good job JMatch!

In this episode, after humiliating himself with his ex, Justin goes out for a night on the town where he presumably hooks up with a woman of the non-mosaic persuasion (uh oh!). After not hearing from Jason for 5 days, Sarah goes on a date with Daniel the finance guy and has a great time. Brett meets Jason’s ex Paige and becomes intrigued by Jason. Oh and Sarah is confused because after her great date with Daniel, she listened to her voice mail and realizes that Jason did call! What to do what to Jew! I know, I know, pure frommage. But I am diggin’ it!

Death came to three notables in the past few days.

Arthur Cores, 52, passed away from cancer in Miami Beach. Born in Brookline and a son of Boston, the philanthropist was one of the founders of a food shop that became Boston Chicken and later Boston Market. The chain, which now number over 500 shops, sold rotisserie chicken and sides, as well as a chicken soup based on recipes of his grandmother. Dr. John Yee, his spouse of over 5 years, told that their first date was on the evening that the chain went public. The IPO stock rose from $20 to $50 a share on the first day and Cores became a multi-millionairre. Cores suggested they eat at a restaurant that evening for which he had a two for one discount coupon.

Jacques Chessex, 75, one of Switzerland’s greatest and most celebrated poets and novelists passed away this month during a lecture at a library. The author of over 80 books, he had just been asked to comment on Roman Polanski’s legal problems when he collapsed and passed away from cardiac arrest. He was the only non Frenchmen to receive the Prix Goncourt, and his latest book, which will be published in English in 2010 was titled “A Jew Must Die” or “Un Juif Pour L’Exemple.” It is based on the true story that involved his neighbors and classmates, about the 1942 murder by Swiss Nazis of a Jewish cattle trader in Payerne. It became a national cause celebre in a country still uncomfortable with its “neutrality” and actions during WWII.

And sadly, Yitzhak Yehiel “Ike” Ahronovitch, 86, passed away this week after a long illness in Northern Israel. He was the 23 year old captain of the refugee steamship “Exodus 1947,” the most famous of the ships of Jewish refugees and Holocasut survivors from Europe that tried to run the British blockade of Palestine. When it was stopped by the British Navy in 1947, and three Jews were killed in the battle, the publicity over Britains deportation of the 4500 Jews to Germany helped to generate worldwide support for the creation of the state of Israel.

Pictures from Palestine Today
From today’s Wall Street Journal Op-Ed“Despite all the misreporting about a “humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza as a result of Israel’s blockade, the flow of aid support from Israel to the narrow strip is uninterrupted. In the week of Dec. 13 -Dec. 19 alone, 553 truckloads with 13,587 tons of merchandise reached Gaza from Israel, according to the Israeli foreign ministry.” The article is an important one.

Hat tip to The Daily Alert.

Breaking news from the European Court. Dervo Sejdic, who is of Roma heritage, and Jakob Finci, of Bosnian Jewish heritage, claimed that the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina had a constitution that discriminated against them. Why? Cuz the constitution says that Jews and Romas cannot hold high government positions. I guess it took the court weeks and months to figure whether this is discrimination.

You see, Finci wanted to run for Parliament, but the Central Election Commission said that he was ineligible to stand in such elections because of his Jewish origin. The Dayton Peace accord separated Bosnia into two entities: the Bosnian Serb-led Republika Srpska and the Muslim and Croat-led Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The constitution makes a distinction between two categories of citizens. The “constituent peoples” are Bosniaks, Croats and Serbs, while “others” include Jews, Roma and other minorities. Posts in the Bosnian parliament and its three-MAN presidency are reserved for constituent peoples. It is intended to prevent ethnic strife (since neither Jews, Romas or others would mind, or are expected to initiate strife)

The court has ordered the government to pay Finci 20,000 Euros. Finci, currently the Bosnian ambassador to Switzerland, might spend it all on chocolate and new ski equipment.

Dani Klein from http://yeahthatskosher.com checks out kosher restaurants for Jewish Travel TV.

SushiKo is the crazy modern kosher sushi place your momma warned you about. OK…. well, maybe not, but it’s awesome. With funky inventive sushi rolls that tantalize your taste buds, and TV screens on the wall allowing you to watch them make your sushi live … it’s awesome. I highly recommend SushiKo in LA.

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For those unaware, Hamas runs a television station known as al-Aksa TV. This station is used by Hamas for propaganda purposes, including children’s TV shows which incite violence against and hatred of Israeli and Jews, in general. One of its more famous shows, the Pioneers of Tomorrow, displayed to the right, featured a Micky Mouse-like character, named Farfour, who advocated jihad against Israel, and preached anti-Semitism to his child audience, before being “martyred” by Israel. Outside of the Palestinian territories, the station is available through various satellite providers. In France, al-Aksa TV is provided by Eutelsat. Recently, the French government’s bureau in charge of audio-visual media, warned Eutelsat that they were breaking French law by providing al-Aksa TV, which “prohibits all forms of incitement to hatred or violence on the ground of race, religion or nationality.” Well done France in your steps to combat terrorism.

The current decade still has one year to go. There has never been a year “0″ in this or similar calendar systems.

This fact was covered in detail all over the media ten years ago, but some people (that now write about their reflections on the decade on blogs and in newspaper columns) apparently were hiding in caves then, fearing the end of the world was near because some fiction author or chain-mail started by Nostradamus himself had said so.

casinò online

Watch the video after the bump.

What? I don’t know! It’s well done and kind of cute and acts as a reminder to all that the 6th annual Jewlicious Festival will take place on February 19th in Long Beach California. Go to the Web site, check it out and then buy tickets!! Then you’ll be able to meet Rabbi Yonah, live!
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Brit & Cony (in happier, hazier times)

TMZ.com is reporting that actress Brittany Murphy died this morning after having been rushed to Cedars-Sinai in LA where she suffered from full cardiac arrest. The 32-year-old actress, best-known for her featured work and memorable roles in “Clueless” and “Girl Interrupted” was also once engaged to Ashton Kutcher. Media is still speculating on the exact cause of her death, though asthma is rumored to have been a catalyst.

Then again, asthma is also rumored to have been the convenient excuse for Murphy’s former husband, Simon Monjack’s rush to the hospital this past month after he got into a brawl in Mexico following her being fired off the set of the film “The Caller.” Wherever the real truth lies,  Monjack, whose nickname is ConJack was apparently not the best influence on our “Uptown” starlet, Jewish wedding ceremonies and all.

Here’s hoping wherever you are Brittany, it’s a better place than with that ConJack hubby of yours.

MATISYAHU was on Letterman Thursday night, the seventh night of Chanukah. Check out the enormous custom disco driedel MATISYAHU uses for his Festival of Lights! The crowd at the end of his performance on Letterman go nuts. One Day is a great song – it’s simple, the message is pure and awesome. Repost, replay, download.

Well sort of…

The new Beit Jewlicious was recently most stylishly and joyously inaugurated. Thanks to a lovely gift of a gorgeous Mezuzah by Genya, yours truly, along with Talya and Leia, added the last remaining piece to the new digs. Genya is now back in Chicago, reunited with her colleagues at the Chicago Hillel as well as with her fiance Slava, but before she left, we lit the Chanukiah and mounted the Mezuzah – always a joyous occasion! Check it out:

Now don’t get too excited. Beit Jewlicious isn’t some new project funded by a broad coalition of Jewish philanthropies! It is however the Israel base of all things Jewlicious. Scores of Jewy Web sites have already been launched from here, loads of advice has already been dispensed to numerous Jewish start ups and many hours have been spent planning and discussing the Jewlicious Festival. Beit Jewlicious contains two loft bedrooms and lots of room so while it’s not a hotel per se, lots of different people have already stayed here over shabbat or for slightly longer stays. Need a place to crash in Jerusalem? Well I guess you can call me up, but if there’s no room or you are looking for something a tad more luxurious, then I suppose you can just look for Hotel rooms in Israel. But will there be the same unbridled joy? The boundless love? The goofy characters? The proximity to the shuk? I don’t know. Find out and tell me!

What we don’t have anymore is morning shuk noise, smelly cats, bizarre odors and shady characters lurking in the stairwell. So if you ever find yourself in Jerusalem by the shuk, look me up. And don’t forget to kiss the Mezuzah!

Dear Friends,

On Wednesday, January 20, at 6:30pm, we will celebrate Jewish unity with music, comedy, and poetry at an unforgettable, delicious, cabaret-style event at LA’s famous El Ray Theater. This Night of Unity is our first ever Gala fundraiser. Please join in our effort to make this a night to remember while helping to raise funds to keep Jewlicious Festival, JConnect and our other projects going.

We are honoring DAVID SUISSA with the Jewish Unity Award. Suissa, is an advertising executive and LA Jewish Journal Columnist, is founder of OLAM magazine, Meals4Israel.com and Ads4Israel.com. Suissa speaks up for justice, Jews, and israel, bridging communities and cultures. He embodies Jewish unity in bringing together the many parts of our community to solve problems and provide mutual support.

There will be great entertainment at this cabaret-style event, headlined by a performance by Grammy Nominated, Gold Record Recording Artist MATISYAHU.

Our Night of Unity Honorary Dinner Chair is STANLEY GOLD, the outgoing chairman of the board, Jewish Federation of Los Angeles

This is no rubber chicken fundraiser dinner. There will be an speak-easy style Casino, Silent Auction, live music all evening, wine and a wide variety of delicious food. For VIP ticket holders there will be bottle service and complimentary drinks as well.

Special appearances have been confirmed by Craig Taubman, Rhoda Weissman, David Sachs, Adam Weinberg, Marcus Freed and others! It is a snazzy night, so dress code is – Black Tie Optional

You can buy tickets, or make a tribute online at jconnectla.com/gala/ , and tickets & tributes start at $180. We have a few sponsorship opportunities for individuals or companies that would like to participate in this event. Please contact us as soon as possible – we have only a few left.

HOST COMMITTEE IN FORMATION
Tom Barad Brett Barenholtz Stanley & Joyce Black Michael Borkow Etan and Emily Cohen Brad and Amy Conroy Daniel Eisenstadt Rachel Ephron Yosi and Wendy Finn Noah Flom Selwyn & Glynis Gerber Bob Hale Josh and Stefanie Kaplan Mellissa Lewkowicz James and Debbie Lustig Nick Meyer Tahlia Miller Larry and Carol Mizel Courtney Mizel Maxine Morris Dr. Sharon Musher Gal & Rabbi Elissa Ben Naim Harry & Dorit Nelson Mark and Renee Phillips Sheri Porath Rockwell Roz and Jerry Rothstein David and Judy Sachs Dr. Rami and Sofia Sadeghi Evan Schlessinger Lou Sokolovsky Alan and Lisa Stern Dubby Teichman Sari Tuschman Gary and Dana Wexler

Watch this video:

This was taken this past Friday in Sheikh Jarrah. Every Friday, protesters have been gathering there lately to protest the expulsion last August of two families from their apartments after the Israel Supreme Court ruled that the land upon which their homes were built belonged to the Sephardi Jewish community. The evacuated houses were built in the 1950s by the UNWRA in order to house Arab refugees who had fled from West Jerusalem during the 1948 war. In 1967, when Israel captured east Jerusalem from Jordan and reunited the city, the Palestinian families were permitted to stay on as tenants. Disputing the validity of the ownership of the land, they stopped paying rent. This led to the events that preceded the protests. As you can see, the bulk of the protesters are Jewish and Israeli. What really stood out though was at around 3:19 of the video. One of the middle aged Palestinian women started chanting what sounds like the following: “Falasteene Bladna, al-Yahud klabna” – that would translate into “Palestine is our country! The Jews are our dogs!” – which is kind of odd – I mean the people walking by her in handcuffs were the aforementioned “Jew Dogs” who had been arrested whilst protesting in favor of the Palestinians. Maybe that’s why she was shushed? I mean am I hearing this right?

Sheikh Jarrah is located on the road to Mount Scopus. In 1948, during the War of Independence, local Arabs butchered like dogs 78 doctors, nurses and others who were riding in a convoy on that road on their way to Hadassah hospital. Maybe old habits die hard? I don’t know! If someone has a better explanation for that woman’s chant, please let me know.

As for the protesters, 27 were arrested on Friday and as far as I know, they were all released late Saturday night.

Hat tip to Joseph Dana who linked to the video from his facebook wall.

On Friday 18 Decembver 2009, Iranian troops crossed the border into Iraq and occupied the Fakka oil field in the province of Maysan. The border in this province is largely disputed. Iran denies such an incursion, but Iraq maintains that it occurred and demanded that the Iranian soldiers withdraw immediately. Yet, according to reports, the Iranian flag still flies over the oil field. This step, militarily speaking, is reminiscent of Germany’s annexation of the Sudetenland in 1938. While the Fakka oil field is not a highly fortified position, as the Sudetenland had been, there has been much talk within intelligence communities that Iran may attempt to seize Iraqi oil fields, particularly if the U.S. should withdraw, allowing it control even more oil; dangerous given that Iran is already the world’s 4th largest oil producer. This may be a “test and see” incursion (i.e. to seize the oil field and wait for world response). Given that world powers, with the exception of the United States, have, as of yet, not responded to the Iranian action, this event may prove to embolden Iran, which has already voiced its intentions to continue with its nuclear program and refused to cooperate with the IAEA. Iran’s growth in strength will only serve to further threaten Israel (along with all other nations), given its ability to reach Israel, along with most of Europe with its ballistic missiles; its attempts to develop nuclear weapons, and voiced intentions of using them; and its current policy of funding Shi’ite (and other) militant groups (such as the Lebanese Hezbollah, the Yemeni Houthis, and the Palestinian Hamas).

Believe it or now, Shemspeed just did a Live In Store at Best Buy in Miggidy-Manhattan (Union Square)! It was really amazing and we are putting up videos of the whole thang, but for now check out these 3.

2. Kosha Dillz “L.A. Ish”
(up top)
1. Eprhyme joined by Diwon – “Papason”
(click to view)
2. DeScribe & Y-Love “Make It”
(click to view)

Photos of the event are at the Shemspeed Flickr.

p.s. Massive Balagan Boogaloo CLosing Night Party/Matisyahu After Party this Motzie Shabbat info at sephardicmusicfest.com/events

Fresh in, the sign “Arbeit Macht Frei” from the entrance to the Auschwitz KZ was stolen.

AP reports via Yahoo news:

[...]

The 5-meter-long (16-foot-long), 40-kilogram (90-pound) iron sign at the Holocaust memorial site in southern Poland was unscrewed on one side and torn off on the other, police spokeswoman Katarzyna Padlo said.

The theft from the entrance to the camp — where more than 1 million people, mostly Jews, died during World War II — brought condemnation worldwide.

“The theft of such a symbolic object is an attack on the memory of the Holocaust, and an escalation from those elements that would like to return us to darker days,” Yad Vashem Chairman Avner Shalev said in a statement from Jerusalem.

[...]

[Read the full article here.]