Oh, And By The Way...

The NYTimes has a gushing story today on four young woman and their rock band in Saudi Arabia.

And deep inside the text, one can find this, without comment:-

In Saudi Arabia, churches are not allowed, and Muslims who convert to Christianity can be executed.

Well, rock their heads.

Ham-Handed?

Delaware Gov. Ruth Ann Minner’s (D) decision to appoint Vice President-elect Joe Biden’s longtime aide Ted Kaufman to the Senate has upset local Democrats who believe the move was a ham-handed attempt to engineer the election of Biden’s son, Beau, to the Senate in 2010.

Isn't Kaufman Jewish?

What Could Go Wrong?

You read my yesterday's post about that shot dead BBC journalist in Somalia?

Well, read on:-

The Foreign Press Association in Israel filed an appeal with the High Court on Monday demanding to be allowed into Gaza. Crossings between Gaza and Israel have been closed for several days due to rocket attacks on the western Negev, and journalists have not been allowed through.

Defense Ministry officials say only humanitarian workers will be allowed through the crossings while attacks continue. Journalists say the decision infringes on freedom of the press.

Heads of major media outlets worldwide recently sent a letter to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert asking him to allow journalists and television crews into Gaza. Among the signatories were senior journalists from ABC, CNN and BBC. Olmert has not yet responded to the letter.

I guess we might as well let them go in. Right?

I mean, what's the worst that can happen? An Alan Johnston kidnapping?

The Matter of Labelling and That Boycott of Yesha Products

An EU-Israel trade agreement allows goods made in Israel to be imported into the 27-nation EU at reduced or nil rates of customs duty. However, products of Jewish communities in the areas of Judea and Samaria are excluded from the benefits and must pay the full rate of duty.

The UK Foreign Office claims there had been reports that the agreement was being circumvented and that some goods produced at these Jewish communities may have been wrongly labelled as made in Israel.

The Foreign Minister, David Miliband, called recently for

"the fair and proper implementation of the agreements on produce from this region...That means preferential trade for Israeli products, preferential trade for Palestinian products, but not preferential trade from the settlements," he said. The Foreign Office spokesman said Britain wanted the trade agreement implemented and products of Jewish settlements labelled as such. "Neither the UK nor the EU should do anything that inadvertently supports or encourages illegal settlement activity," he said.

[Israel President Shimon] Peres said there was an EU agreement. "I think it would be strange to have 27 agreements on every issue, with all due respect. We negotiated very hard to find a compromise," he said. Most workers in the settlements were Palestinians and if they were fired due to a crackdown on exports it would increase unemployment, said Peres, who is on a five-day visit to Britain.

Asked how he justified the suffering of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Peres said: "Why should they suffer? Let them stop shooting and they won't suffer."

First of all, kudos to Peres for finally being rational and pithy.

Second of all, do we now have to label exactly who made these products? After all, if Arabs are employed, does it not make the products, partially at least, non-Jewish?

Third, if Israeli Arabs who consider themselves "Palestinian Arabs with Israeli citizenship", as is the latest subversive nationalist fashion among them, would Mr. Miliband & Co. require any products and produce they make to be labelled as, what?

And fourth, if Israel decided that the UK was doing something "illegal", I don't know, like Ireland, the Falkland Islands, the British Virgin Islands, Gibraltar, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands, the British Indian Ocean Territory or such matters as the operations of the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council, could we retaliate economically - with full justification?

Irresponsible Media - Dead Journalist

A BBC journalist who was murdered on assignment in Somalia was not wearing a flak jacket when she was shot in the back outside a hotel, an inquest heard today.

The senior producer Kate Peyton, 39, had only just arrived in the country's lawless capital, Mogadishu, in February 2005, when she was killed.

She had travelled there from her base in Johannesburg with the reporter Peter Greste to film a series of reports about the Somali peace process.

DCI David Skevington, of Suffolk police, told the inquest at Ipswich crown court today that Peyton was not wearing a flak jacket when a gunman opened fire as she went to get into a car outside the Sahafi hotel.

"The BBC will say that flak jackets were taken but were not normally worn because it was thought that it would draw unnecessary attention and invite attack," he said.

Source

And this

A BBC journalist shot dead while working in one of the world's most dangerous countries "felt she had to go" to prove her commitment, an inquest heard today.

Producer Kate Peyton, 39, of Beyton, Suffolk, died in February 2005 after being shot in the back by a gunman outside a hotel in Mogadishu.

Her sister Rebecca, 36, told the inquest in Ipswich today that Miss Peyton was worried about losing her job.

Rebecca said her sister wanted a fourth year added to her contract and feared that bosses doubted her commitment.

"She had been told there were doubts about her commitment to her job," said Rebecca.

"She completely felt that she had to go to prove that she was committed.

"When it comes to news journalism, you can earn a lot of points by going to dangerous places.

I'm In "Occupied Territory" And The Paper Is In "Uncharted Territory"; We Even?

New York Times Co. in 'Uncharted Territory'

The Ochs-Sulzberger family's dilemma over The New York Times Co. grew starker this week, as the company finally cut the dividend that provides big chunks of their income and the stock price plummeted further. Shares in the Times Co. fell 6.64% today to close at $5.34. That's a 66.8% decline in one year.

Slashing the quarterly dividend to 6 cents from 23 cents will help the company save cash, reduce debt and improve its liquidity. It's a move that observers called for long ago, only to see the company increase the dividend last year to 23 cents from 17.5 cents.

"When they increased it last year, I thought it was a mistake, but I thought strategically the reason they did it was they were trying to separate themselves out of the pack," said Ken Doctor, a newspaper veteran turned media analyst for Outsell, the research and advisory firm. "They were saying we're a premium newspaper company. But events overwhelmed them."...

I'd rather be in liberated territory, actually.

I'd Stick With The Jewish Eight-Day Old Ceremony

Circumcision-By-Bulk in the Balkans

In the southern Balkans, a small Muslim ethnic group maintains its collective identity by means of mass circumcision. Once every five years, villagers gather to ordain their boys. And to party for four straight days.

...a small Muslim ethnic group scattered across present-day Serbia, Kosovo, Macedonia and Albania...wanted enough freedom to maintain their cultural traditions. For those living in the mountain villages of Donje and Gornje Ljubinje in southern Kosovo that meant, above all, the quinntenial celebration of Sunet, the festival of mass circumcision...the mass circumcision is a tradition that goes back centuries and locals feel it helps differentiate them from the myriad neighboring ethnic groups.

"This is why we are not the same as the others, even when it does not help us," Arif Kurtishi, a member of the Gorani diaspora who returned to Donje Ljubinje last year from Sweden for the festival, told the AFP.

You can say that again.

At last year's Sunet, 130 boys from 10 months to five years -- some brought from abroad -- were circumcised by 70 year old Zylfikar Shishko, a barber from the nearby town of Prizren who has been performing the role for the last 45 years...

...The procedure itself hasn't changed for centuries. To the sound of Muslim prayers, Shishko brandishes his instruments -- a scalpel, iodine and medical powder -- and applies them to each child. For the sake of tradition, the boys don't receive anesthetic -- Shishko is accompanied by two assistants who hold the boy down -- but they are compensated with presents and attention from the villagers.

The to-be-circumcised are also the guests of honor at the three full days of festivities that precede and follow the incisions. These include a parade through the neighboring villages, oil wrestling, tug-of-war, stone throwing and live music from traditional five-man brass bands. When the festival comes to a close, the villagers return to their day-to-day hardships while the emigrants make their way to their new homes...

What A Name

He likes to express controversial opinions, like the notion that police should "ethnically cleanse" homosexuals or that immigrants in public parks should be "dressed up like rabbits" and used for target practice. But now Giancarlo Gentilini, the deputy mayor of the northeastern Italian city of Treviso, has reportedly had a fatwa declared against him.

"I defend my culture, my religion and civilization without any fear, and so it is natural that I will make some enemies," Gentilini, who belongs to the anti-immigrant, far-right Northern League party, told the Italian news agency ANSA Friday.

Source

The Village Next To My Home in Shiloh

A bus was damaged Monday evening by rocks thrown by Arabs in the Samarian Arab village of Sinjil. No injuries were reported in the attack.

Three Reasons for No Peace

Aaron David Miller counts three reasons for no peace between the Arabs of Judea and Samaria and Israel in an op-ed:-

First, there are the issues...The gaps have now narrowed, perhaps impressively, but closing them, particularly on the identity issues such as Jerusalem and refugees, is still beyond the reach of negotiators and leaders.

...my second point. The dysfunction and confusion in Palestine make a conflict-ending agreement almost impossible. The divisions between Hamas (itself divided) and Fatah (even more divided) are now geographic, political and hard to bridge...

...Third, there is serious dysfunction at the political level in Israel as well. Israel has its own leadership crisis.

Makes it seem so simple.

So simple that Condi Rice has another take:-

The fact that Israel and the Palestinians have not reached a peace agreement and will likely fail to do so by the end of 2008 is "largely due to" political turmoil in Israel, US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said Sunday night.

"Even though there was not an agreement by the end of the year, it is really largely because of the political situation in Israel," Rice told reporters.

I Hope He Still Has A Job

Who?

This employee of Haaretz, a vicious anti-Israel presence in Yesha newspaper, who found his way into a report by Gideon Levy:

They came here from all over the country. Even one of our colleagues from the Haaretz management left his wife at home to go. "I fantasize about this every year, and this year I came," he said, his eyes gleaming. He paid for his dinner before Sabbath began, and ate shnitzel and salads in the abandoned Arab wholesale market.

Finally, Olmert Doing Something Right

Kadima officials: Olmert sabotaging our campaign

Senior members of the Kadima party have claimed recently that Prime Minister Ehud Olmert is sabotaging Chairwoman Tzipi Livni's election campaign and not behaving as would be expected from a prime minister during elections.

The criticism grew stronger over the weekend, after Kadima members read the public opinion polls and realized that their party was losing power, while the Likud and Chairman Benjamin Netanyahu were gaining popularity.

"Olmert fails to consider the fact that Kadima has entered an election campaign period," said one senior official, known as the prime minister's close associate.

The criticism was mostly directed at Olmert's statements during the state ceremony in memory of former Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin on Jerusalem's Mount Herzl, when he said Israel should return to the 1967 border.

"His remarks are irresponsible, particularly when it comes to diplomatic issues, and voices opinions which suit the Labor Party or Meretz," said one of the officials, a Kadima minister.

Senior party members have also claimed that the prime minister excludes the foreign minister from diplomatic processes and is trying "to make her look small"...

It's Tough When You're Flunking Kabbalah

Being reported:

Even before the ink was dry on Madonna’s divorce decree, her rumored beau, Yankee slugger Alex Rodriguez, was beginning to distance himself from her beloved Kabbalah.

A source close to the Kabbalah Centre says that A-Rod has backed out of attending private classes with spiritual leader Eitan Yardeni, canceling them at the last minute.

“He hasn’t even finished Kabbalah 1 (the introduction to the study of Kabbalah) and the majority of the time he’s spent with Yardeni so far was for counseling, not study,” says the source.

More Wall Posters

This one warns Breslav Chassidim not to participate in the mayoralty elections, despite rumors to do otherwise:


This one warns against the taking of money from state authorities for yeshivot as too the next one does:

Sundays Are For The Gym (Not For "Faith Experience")

Politico reports:

President-elect Barack Obama has yet to attend church services since winning the White House earlier this month, a departure from the example of his two immediate predecessors. On the three Sundays since his election, Obama has instead used his free time to get in workouts at a Chicago gym.

Asked about the president-elect's decision to not attend church, a transition aide noted that the Obamas valued their faith experience in Chicago but were concerned about the impact their large retinue may have on other parishioners.

"Because they have a great deal of respect for places of worship, they do not want to draw unwelcome or inappropriate attention to a church not used to the attention their attendance would draw," said the aide.

So, religion is out, faith experience is in.

But at least, he's referring to a church.

Maybe Jews Need To Teach Christians About Sex

This story on Christians "discovering", or is that "rediscovering" sex, is a bit odd for me.

Texas Pastor’s Advice for Better Marriage: More Sex, More Often

My very good friend and comrade-in-blogging, Tzvi Fishman, has a blog site on the issues of Jewish Sexuality (here) and any Google search will lead you to here
and to this book, just for starters (and you can check this out, too) And the attitudes, suggestions and conceptualization frameworks of thinking have been around for, well, 3000 years.

Why couldn't Christians pick up on that long ago?

Well, let's read what was in the NYTimes piece:-

...the Rev. Ed Young challenged husbands and wives among his flock of 20,000 to strengthen their unions through Seven Days of Sex, his advice was — keep it going...“Today we’re beginning this sexperiment, seven days of sex,” he said, with his characteristic mix of humor, showmanship and Scripture. “How to move from whining about the economy to whoopee!”

...Mr. Young advised the couples to “keep on doing what you’ve been doing this week. We should try to double up the amount of intimacy we have in marriage. And when I say intimacy, I don’t mean holding hands in the park or a back rub.”

...if you make the time to have sex, it will bring you closer to your spouse and to God, he has said. You will perform better at work, leave a loving legacy for your children to follow and may even prevent an extramarital affair...This is not a gimmick or a publicity stunt, Mr. Young says. Just look at the sensuousness of the Song of Solomon, or Genesis: “two shall become one flesh,” or Corinthians: “do not deprive each other of sexual relations.”

“For some reason the church has not talked about it, but we need to,” he said, speaking by telephone Friday night on his way to South Africa for a mission trip. There is no shame in marital sex, he added, “God thought it up, it was his idea.”...

Gee, that doesn't read very earthshattering. At least he got the Bible correct.

You can try this book of which has been said:

Arousing. Sexy. Seductive. You're talking about Judaism? Yup, or so says world-renowned sex educator Dr. Ruth Westheimer. Though many might find the statement above hard to believe, Westheimer contends that the religion celebrates human sexuality. Even the holiest of men are required to marry and, as Dr. Ruth so skillfully reminds us, "Celibacy is not a virtue. Orgasms are." The authors interpret various stories and help readers understand the significance of each. The book concludes with a handy biblical glossary and an annotated listing of legal codifications in Jewish law...

...best known for making the word orgasm a TV talk show favorite, collaborates with Jewish Week editor Mark in a more significant accomplishment--a thoughtful study of the role of sexuality in Judaica. The two use an array of sources for their inquiries and discussions: interpretations of the Talmud, such customs as the ritual bath, and the Bible's commandments are the principal ones. Particularly interesting is the reading of the Book of Ruth as a primer for sex therapy, but then, a Dr. Ruth book can be expected to conclude that healthy sexual activity between consenting adults is a bracha (blessing).

If you are looking for a more scholarly book, here's one I read back in 1968.

Or is this just a Baptist thing?

A New Carnival

Shiny Happy Dhimmi

SNL's Arianna Huffington Skit

Over at Gawker

"I Want To Be A Rebbe"

I hope the Yiddish original is better than the English with its typos.

Rockstar parody.

Livni's Incitement

Uri Orbach on The fake Tzipi Livni

I

really don’t believe in reincarnation, yet a few days ago my disbelief was somewhat undermined. Tzipi Livni stood on stage at a Kadima meeting, yet out of our mouth spoke former Shinui Chairman Tommy Lapid. It was odd, as Tommy is no longer with us; he must be in heaven, arguing with some great rabbis. Yet here was Tzipi: “Kadima will represent Israel and determine its identity as a Jewish state, without selling off the state to the ultra-Orthodox along the way.”

I must say this surprised me. Hey, it’s Tommy Lapid. That’s not the kind of statement that is commensurate with the blurred figure heading Kadima. This is juicy, unequivocal, and filled with hostility and hot blood. After all, Tzipi Livni never spoke like this. “Selling off the state to the ultra-Orthodox” even has some hidden, and overt, anti-Semitic tones. There are plenty of things one can find in this statement, yet it includes very little of the good old, pale Tzipi Livni.

After regaining my senses, I realized this was not Tommy speaking; rather, we were dealing with one of the public relations consultants that surround Livni these days. They are telling her to convey determination and belligerence toward the Orthodox and to woo the secularist Center, so that it would stay away from Bibi; and she’s going along with it.

The statement “we won’t sell off the state to the ultra-Orthodox” is playing up the old fears while trying to enlist them to the campaign. This is Livni’s way of saying that the state belongs to the seculars and that Kadima will protect it from the ultra-Orthodox...