Clinton congratulates Israel on Independence day

Our nation will not waver in protecting Israel's security and promoting Israel's future.

Yeah? Well thankfully there's a Congress to make sure of it, because we sure as hell don't trust you.

At least it wasn't a 45-minutes harangue.

Source: Politico

Israel will defend itself vow leaders on Memorial Day

I was never a big Peres fan, but in truth, he has been an exemplary statesman as President of Israel, as witnessed through his speeches and his actions, especially when he traded verbal blows with Erogan.

"We are a democratic country, with many divisions and chasms, internal disagreements and wrangling, yet we are also a nation that knows how to stand united and put aside the bickering in times of need, to defend itself and inflict a resounding defeat on those who wish to destroy us."

Would that all of our politicians spoke like this all the time.

Source: Haaretz

Israel population nears 7.6 million

Besides all the snarkiness, the overall news in the article is positive:

Of the 7,587,000 population, 5,726,000, or 75.5 percent, are Jews and 1,548,000, or 20.4 percent, are Arabs, according to the Central Bureau of Statistics.

The population has grown by 137,000 people in the past year, a 1.8 percent increase.

So much for all the doomsayers who have warned us for decades that the Arabs will one day outnumber us.

Source

Netanyahu: Israel Must Rely Only on Itself

On the eve of Israel's 62nd Independence Day, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said the nation must not rely on the help of foreigners. He was quoting from the founder of modern Zionism, Theodor Herzl.

Mr. Netanyahu told the Cabinet that according to Herzl, Israel can rely only on itself.

Well, better late than never.

The truth is, Israel doesn't have to rely on itself. It has to rely on God. But this is the first step to realizing that.

Source

Yom HaShoah

This is the reason, despite all the politics, all the bitter divisiveness that we fling at each other all year long, we continue to be God's Chosen People:

It is eight million Jews (minus a few assholes who continue their baseless hatred of fellow Jews) stopping to remember the seven million (more accurate) true martyrs whose sacrifice made the State of Israel possible.

Jumping to Conclusions. Again.

I've read a bit about the Yasuf mosque arson. So far, I'm unimpressed by the "evidence" that Jews perpetrated the attack. Mostly because there is none. N-o-n-e. Not a grainy cell phone picture, no video, nothing:

CNN 12/11/09 - "No one knows who set ablaze and vandalized the mosque -- located in the West Bank village of Yasuf."

NYT, complete with photo op of Palestinian mama with her hands raised, says "arsonists, presumed by Palestinians and many Israelis to be Jewish extremists..."

AP "But authorities believe Jewish extremists carried out the attack in retaliation for a government-ordered slowdown in settlement construction."

Reuters just goes right ahead and assumes it was Jews. Facts? Who needs facts? These are Jews we're talking about: "The vandalism at the mosque marked a rise in violence by Jewish settlers mounting protests against a temporary freeze on construction in their enclaves, which Israel says was aimed at persuading Palestinians to resume stalled peace talks."

BBC's reporting is likewise full of conjecture, but nothing concrete. Some graffiti? I can spray paint anything I want in any language Google Translate offers ("Póg mo asal dubh!"). Palestinian eyewitnesses? Really now, no one actually believes them anymore now do they? 10,000 dead in Gaza, mass graves in Jenin, 40 dead in Houla, Lebanon...

The Arabs aren't only angry at the Jews. They're angry at everyone. Did the imam speak out against a Hamas leader? Did he speak out against Fatah? Did someone's daughter run away? Was it a Tuesday? There is no end to the reason why something like this could have happened.

As far as I'm concerned, the rabbis who did their little mea cupla shtick are an embarrassment, and if the Arabs themselves don't burn the Korans al Yahud brought to them, well then color me surprised. Vidduy is a wonderful thing. Let's save it for when we really have something to apologize for.

Metzger visited the Arab village? Wow, the Chief Rabbi of the Disengagement usually visits synagogues before they're torched.

Remind me how many chumashim were delivered when they torched the shul in California in 1999.
Remind me how many chumashim were delivered when they torched Kever Yosef in 2000.
Remind me how many chumashim were delivered when they torched the shul in Marseilles in 2002.
Remind me how many chumashim were delivered when they torched the shuls in London in 2004.
Remind me how many chumashim were delivered when they torched the shuls in Gush Katif in 2005.

One burnt mosque? Who gives a shit.

Netanyahu Doesn't Get It

"I would like you, as leaders, to sit at the steering wheel together with us. There is one item that is not on the agenda: You may demonstrate, protest and express your opinions, but it cannot be that you will not abide by decisions which have been made according to law."

Source

What the hell is this from Netanyahu now? And so what if the leaders of Yehuda and Shomron are choosing to ignore, oppose and 'not abide by' a mandate they weren't a part of issuing? Don't you think that Netanyahu should have checked with them first, before throwing them under the bus for Obama? Or even for a shot at Iran? It's called freedom. Look it up.

Does Netanyahu really expect an entire segment of a population, which still remembers the Gush Katif Sellout Debacle, to simply roll over when laws are passed that further deteriorate their quality of life? The settlers have learned from their mistakes, and promises from the government are generally viewed as total bullshit. You see, Bibi expected the protests, the screaming the yelling, but the whole "we're going to do what we want anyway" thing took him a little by surprise. Like I said, we've learned from our mistakes. There are almost a half million people. Is he going to put everyone in prison? My only wish is that I had something to build...

We all know this settlement freeze is a joke. It's been pundited (if that's a word) to death, and all but the most oblique idiot can see right through it. This is all about garnering support from the US in the UN when Israel bombs Iran back to the stone age. But this governing style where everyone gets to knock around the settlers is just gonna hafta stop.

"Liberty consists less in doing one's will than in not being subject to that of another; it consists again in not submitting the will of another to our own." -Rousseau.

Read a book, Bibi.