יום רביעי, 12 בדצמבר 2012

Elder of Ziyon Daily News

Elder of Ziyon Daily News

Link to Elder of Ziyon

Australian cartoonist loves his anti-semitic themes; paper defends him

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 06:45 PM PST

From the Australian Jewish News:

THE editor-in-chief of The Age has defended a series of cartoons published over the last week, one of which the B'nai B'rith Anti-Defamation Commission (ADC) labelled as "virulent hate-speech", that have outraged the Melbourne Jewish community.

A cartoon by Michael Leunig last Wednesday adapted German pastor Martin Niemoeller's famous "First they came for the Jews" statement about the apathy of German intellectuals following the Nazi rise to power, changing it to "First they came for the Palestinians".

The cartoon then states: "I did not speak out because if I did, doors would close to me, hateful mail would arrive, bitterness and spiteful condemnations would follow."

ADC chairperson Dvir Abramovich said the cartoon "crossed the line", using anti-Semitic words and themes.

"'They' of course referred to the Nazis. In Leunig's cartoon, however, it is the Israelis who are the Nazis," he said. "Leunig's second anti-Semitic theme [is] that anyone who supports the Palestinians will immediately be besieged by the all-powerful Jewish lobby. This is the kind of hateful rhetoric you would expect on anti-Semitic websites, not The Age."

A second Leunig cartoon on Saturday portrayed a character – presumably Jewish – at Mount Sinai receiving the commandment "Thou shalt not kill" before shooting both Moses and God dead, then standing on the mountain wearing God's crown. Then a Bruce Petty cartoon on Monday, November 26, showed a boat of Palestinians with the banner "The Right of Return – UN" approaching a heavily fortified and armed Israel flying the banner "The Right to be Here – Bible".

"This not only ignores the unquestionable fact that the UN created the modern Jewish State, but also overlooks thousands of years of Jewish history in the Land of Israel," Abramovich said.

Defending the cartoons, Age editor-in-chief Andrew Holden said the cartoonists were all "very experienced, and well aware of the sensitivities around Middle East politics".

"However, they are also entitled to express their personal opinions, even if these are challenging."
I am not one to charge anti-semitism at the drop of a hat, but both of the Leunig cartoons clearly fit that definition.

The anti-semitism here is from the obvious attempt at an analogy between today's Israeli Jews and the Nazis. Besides the fact that such a comparison is sickeningly obscene, it is also one that anti-semites love specifically because it causes such pain to Jews. They love the supposed image of Jews acting, they claim, like their murderers.

Claiming that this could have applied to any ethnic group, as Leunig does in his response, is disingenuous. He obviously and deliberately chose to equate Jews to Nazis - not Chinese, not Syrians, not Americans. Imagine a similar cartoon about Copts in Egypt or Kurds in Turkey - it simply wouldn't work. The entire impact of the cartoon, the delicious irony, would be diminished by using anyone besides Jews as the Nazi-equivalent.

There is of course one other anti-semtiic motif at play, which is that the all-powerful Jewish lobby shuts down freedom of speech. This is rich coming from Leunig, who as far as I can tell is not worried about losing his job. In fact, he has been obsessed with demonizing Israel for years with no apparent impact to his fame or fortune. This cartoon is not only pure anti-semitism, it is a puerile attempt to make the cartoonist feel brave.

The second one is even more explicitly anti-semitic:
The Jews, recipients of the Ten Commandments, are not only murderers - but they are prophet-killers (as Muslims charge) and God-killers. (Dare I say "Christ-killers"?)

What can this cartoon represent except naked hate for, and incitement against, Jews? How else can it be interpreted?

Other cartoons of his, while horribly skewed, are not anti-semitic. A decade-old cartoon of his that was rejected by the same newspaper undoubtedly was.

Leunig's pitiful defense of his cartoons is taken apart by Galus Australis.

Orthodox Jewish basketball player at Northwestern

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 04:00 PM PST

From ESPN last week:
Hanukkah, the Jewish Festival of Lights, begins at sundown Saturday. But there's already cause for celebration among Jewish basketball fans thanks to Aaron Liberman, a freshman walk-on at Northwestern who also happens to be an Orthodox Jew. He hasn't yet appeared in a game this season because of a nasty case of shin splints, but he's easy to spot on the bench: He's the one wearing a yarmulke.

When Liberman is eventually given medical clearance to make his Northwestern debut, which he expects will be "pretty soon," he plans to wear his yarmulke on the court. (Northwestern is making two versions for him -- purple and white for home games, and purple and black for the road.) That will make him only the second yarmulke-clad player in Division I basketball history. The first such player was Tamir Goodman, the much-hyped "Jewish Jordan," who played for Towson in 2000 and 2001. But disagreements with a new coach derailed Goodman's college basketball career early in his sophomore year, leaving Division I hard courts yarmulke-free until Liberman's arrival this season.

And get this: Liberman, who's 6-foot-10 and was fifth in the nation in blocked shots for Valley Torah High School in Los Angeles in 2011, also plans to wear tzitzit -- the specially knotted fringes or tassels worn by observant Jews -- on the court. The tzitzit will be underneath his base-layer undershirt, and the fringes will be tucked into his shorts. Goodman didn't wear tzitzit while at Towson, so Liberman almost certainly will be Division I's first tzitzit-clad player. Mazel tov!
The article goes on to talk about how Division III basketball teams (like Yeshiva University) deals with yarmulkes, and has a hilarious aside about when the Mets pitching coach was seen on TV wearing a Mets yarmulke in 2010.

Chanukah song night 4: Matisyahu

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 02:30 PM PST



All Proceeds through the End of Hanukkah will be donated to Hurricane Sandy Relief. For more info visit:http://bit.ly/MatisyahuHanukkah

Donate and download at http://bit.ly/MatisyahuHanukkah
Available on iTunes: http://smarturl.it/h55ln4
Available on Amazon: http://amzn.to/Tcev1n

(h/t Yerushalimey)

Turkey jails more journalists than any other country

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 12:45 PM PST

From Now (Lebanon):
Turkey has been hailed as a beacon of democracy in a troubled region. Many cite it as an example for post-revolutionary countries of the Arab Spring, as it is held up as a successful fusion of liberalism and Islam.

But a report by the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) published on Tuesday sheds a different light on the country's record of liberalism. With 49 journalists in prison, CPJ calls Turkey "the world's worst jailer," and it sits at the top of a list that includes Iran, China and Eritrea.

"There is no independent media left," says Nuray Mert, one of the country's most prolific journalists and columnists. Like her, many journalists in the country complain that an atmosphere of intimidation and self-censorship has reigned since Prime Minister Reccep Tayyip Erdogan began consolidating his power. Mert used to write for Turkey's biggest papers and was a regular guest on political talk shows. This changed when Erdogan singled her out during a public speech for her criticism of government policies.

"I wrote a column saying that we have to take the Kurds seriously and not treat them as subjects, that we have to grant them collective rights," says Mert of the 15 million Kurds in Turkey whom the government has denied cultural and political freedoms for decades.

In a speech after her column ran, Erdogan more or less accused Mert of treason. Her editors understood the message, and she was fired. "Later I got a call not to show up on TV anymore either." She started receiving a flood of hate mail and threats. "I was afraid that someone from the ultra-right nationalists would attack me."

Still, Mert was never arrested, unlike dozens of other journalists who were charged with "helping terrorist organizations." Just reporting on the outlawed Kurdish Worker's Party (PKK), passing on contact details or assigning stories on the organization is enough to be labeled a terrorist by the Turkish government.

Erdogan's officials and the courts use draconian anti-terror legislation written after the military coup in the early 1980s. The cases are handled by "special-authority courts," which can hold suspects in custody for years without trial. Detainees can have their access to their lawyers and files restricted and are often prohibited from communicating with anyone outside their detention centers.

In the past, these courts have practically erased the presumption of innocence.
"There is a new term for journalists used by the government," says Elif Ilgaz, a leading press freedom advocate. "They call it 'organized journalism' to discredit us."

Tuesday links

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 11:45 AM PST

From Ian:
Rejection and terror: Same old Palestinian choices
"That Abbas would rather shun repeated offers from Israel, and instead embrace Hamas, indicates that yet again, when presented with a path for peace, the Palestinians chose rejection and terror
Some have even suggested Israel ought to directly negotiate with Hamas. But where does one begin negotiations with an enemy that does not even recognise your basic right to exist?
As Ron Prosor, Israel's Ambassador to the UN, said in a recent interview with CNN's Piers Morgan: "What would we negotiate with them: how big the coffin should be, how deep the hole or what flowers to send to my funeral?"

Judea Pearl: Viewing Palestinian statehood through the clear lens of morality
"In conclusion, Netanyahu will not be risking a thing by demanding a "total end to the conflict" and "two states for two peoples." Abbas will reject the offer out of hand. At the same time, these preconditions are so morally compelling that even European politicians would not be able to brand them "unreasonable." Abbas's rejection will then restore to Israel the high moral grounds it has held since Nov. 29, 1947."

Netanyahu blasts international community for staying quiet amid Hamas calls for Israel's destruction
"PM says 'deafening silence' of European governments and PA President Abbas over Mashaal's comments this weekend is unacceptable; EU does issue statement, soon after PM's critique"

Lieberman Accuses EU of Holocaust Attitude
"Europe has "slapped itself in the face" by ignoring Hamas' threats as it ignored the Nazi death camps in the Holocaust, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman charged on Tuesday, a day after Europe condemned Israel for construction plans for Jews in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria."

Israeli Ambassador to US Michael Oren Interviewed by Chris Wallace VIDEO
Israel's so-called "red line" is different than the United States'. While Israel considers the "red line" to be the movement of chemical weapons to extremist groups, the Obama administration has said lately that its trigger for action would be any move by Syrian President Bashar Assad to use the weapons against the Syrian people.



Israeli Settlement Facts and Falsehoods
"6. Are Jewish settlements in Judea and Samaria legal?
Judge Stephen Schwebel, former president of the International Court of Justice, determined that Israel's presence in Judea and Samaria was rooted in self-defense and therefore did not constitute "occupation." Eugene Rostow, former dean of Yale Law School, former undersecretary of state and co-author of U.N. Security Council Resolution 242, which sets out the criteria for Israel-Arab peacemaking said U.N. Resolution 242 does not call for withdrawal to the pre-1967 boundaries; Israel's withdrawal from Sinai amounts to a 90 percent withdrawal from post-1967 areas; "

CAMERA: Media Embrace E1 Falsehoods
Instead of Investigating Activist Claims, Media Echo Them

CAMERA Prompts New York Times Corrections on Effect of E1 Corridor

CIF Watch: Guardian's obsessively critical coverage of E-1 construction proposal, by the numbers
"The coverage almost exclusively advanced the narrative that plans to eventually build homes in E-1 would represent a death knell to the Two State Solution, would literally cut the West Bank in two, and would deny access to eastern Jerusalem to West Bank Palestinians."

US intelligence foresees Palestinian state without resolution of conflict
"New U.S. intelligence report on what the world may look like in 2030 says a Palestinian state could come into being via "unofficial independent actions," but that the core issues of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would remain unresolved. Report says that Middle East faces a "highly unstable future" if Iranian regime develops nuclear weapons."

Arab League Pledges Financial 'Safety Net' to Abbas
Representatives of the Arab League pledge to transfer a monthly sum of 100 million dollars as a "financial safety net" for PA.

On My Mind: Palestine's Turkish agent
"Trying to be more Palestinian than the Palestinians, Turkey's foreign minister went even further.
"No one can deny the suffering of the Palestinians since the First World War until today," said Davutoglu, implying that the Balfour Declaration of 1917, 30 years before the UN partition plan, was the beginning of Palestinian suffering.
Turkey's posturing on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has become so ardent that The New York Times, in a recent editorial, mistakenly called Turkey an Arab country."

Iran-Turkey Trade Rose 46% - Turkish Gold Buys Iranian Oil
Trade between Iran and Turkey has risen nearly 50 percent this year, according to the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA).

Israel is the farthest our missiles need to reach, Iran's air force commander says
Statement follows report casting doubt on Tehran's intercontinental missile capabilities

Jihadists Aim to Rule across from Golan Heights
Jihadist victories in Syria may leave them side-by-side with Hizbullah, Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood as Israel's neighboring regimes.
"The possibility of the Syrian side of the Golan Heights border with Israel being manned by jihadists in a post-Assad era has not been ignored by the United States.
The United States will declare the Al-Nusra Front, a jihadist group battling to overthrow Syria's President Bashar Assad, a "foreign terrorist organization," according to documents."

Wounded IDF Soldier Recovers in Time for Hanukkah
Sergeant Shimon Alankri, who was seriously wounded last month in a terrorist attack on an IDF jeep, has recovered.
"On Monday, Alankri spoke to Channel 2 News, recalled the attack and talked about what he has gone through since. "The fact that I got out of this alive is proof that I won," he said, recalling that his doctors had been concerned he would lose his eyesight. "I woke up two days after being on a respirator .... There is no doubt that I received a gift from G-d. It's a miracle and I am now stating a new life."

Israeli Scientists Freeze Tumors in New Breast Cancer Treatment
"Israeli scientists have developed a new technique to treat breast cancer and it is being used in trials already. The method employs a supercooled needle tip to repeatedly freeze then defrost tumors. This damages and ultimately kills the harmful tissue."

Objet completes merger and $1.4b exit
Israeli 3D printer developer Objet and US rival Stratasys have now merged into a new Israeli company called Stratasys.
"Last weekend it looked like Retalix Ltd. (Nasdaq: RTLX; TASE: RTLX) acquisition by NCR at a company value of $800 million was going to be the largest Israeli exit of 2012. However, this morning that deal was surpassed. Israeli 3D printer manufacturer Objet Ltd. and its US rival Stratasys Inc. (Nasdaq: SSYS) announced that their merger has been completed creating a company with a value of $3 billion that will be incorporated in Israel."

Apple now competing with Intel for former TI employees in Israel, may build new R&D center there
"Apple's attempts to hire former Texas Instruments employees in Israel are being met with a healthy dose of competition. TNW has learned that processor giant Intel has begun an aggressive campaign to lure engineers away from Apple in that country."

Google teams with Israeli high-tech start-ups
Technology giant launches innovative facilities in Tel Aviv
"Google is searching for promising Israeli high-tech companies. The international technology giant on Monday launched its "Campus Tel Aviv," a 1,500-square-foot (140-square-meter) space that will hold regular events for local entrepreneurs and offer access to Google staff and other industry experts."

also:

Making peace by going to Israel (h/t Josh)

From Al-Masara to the Wall Street Journal: A Case Report of Palestinian Fauxtography (h/t Phyllis)

'Israeli students register highest-ever test scores' (h/t Yoel)

A unique and mysterious remnant of Jewish life in Europe went on display in Jerusalem this week: a Hanukkah menorah made from the ornamental headgear of a soldier of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. (h/t Ishai)

Palestine, Contiguity and the Absolute Truth at Volokh

Quantum levitation, from Tel Aviv U. (h/t AW, over a year old though)

Hasby Award nominations, continued (continuously updated)

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 09:00 AM PST

It is not 100% confirmed yet, but it looks like I will be able to host the live presentation of the Hasby Awards in New York City in late January.

I would therefore like to solicit nominations again, but adding categories (as was suggested to me.)

So here are the rules:

I am listing here the categories I can think of, along with some suggested nominees.

In the comments, add your own nominees (with URLs, if appropriate) and which category they should be nominated in.

Every nominee, both the ones I list here and the ones in the comments, must be seconded before I consider them as "official" nominees. That can be done in the comments as well. No one can "second" more than one nominee in any particular category. (There is no limit of nominees per commenter. Self nominations are fine, but we know who you are :)

If you have a suggestion for another category, you can place that in the comments as well, along with nominees. (That would also have to be seconded.) I will add it to this post.

I reserve the right to decide if a nominee is appropriate, and I will pare down the number of nominees for popular categories if needed.

Please, no extraneous comments. Any comment that is not a nominee, a second, or a suggestion for new categories will be deleted. 

OK, here are the suggested categories and some suggested nominees, some from my previous post's comments (apologies for not giving all the URLs)

Best pro-Israel tweeter:
Avi Mayer (seconded)
David HaIvri
Challah Hu Akbar (seconded)
The Israel Project
Martin Kramer
Arsen Ostrovsky
ThisIsPalestine
MargieinTelAviv
Best pro-Israel Facebook page:
Iron Dome Count on Facebook

Best pro-Israel media outlet/commentator (not exclusive to Israeli topics)
The Commentator (seconded)
Douglas Murray (seconded)
Melanie Phillips (seconded)
Gatestone Institute
Charles Krauthammer

Best pro-Israel commentator (exclusive to Middle East/Israel)
Barry Rubin (seconded)
Daniel Gordis
Martin Kramer (seconded)

Best English-language pro-Israel media outlet (Jewish or Israeli)
Algemeiner (seconded)
Times of Israel
Israel HaYom (seconded)
Jewish Press (online)
Tablet

Best mainstream media watchdog
CAMERA (seconded)
Honest Reporting
BBC Watch (seconded)
CiF Watch (seconded)
David G Daily Mideast Media Sampler (Seconded)
Huffington Post monitor (seconded)

Best general pro-Israel blog (present company excluded)
Israellycool (seconded)
Israel Matzav
Missing Peace
Daphne Anson
Augean Stables (seconded)
Sultan Knish (seconded)
Daled Amos (seconded)
Harry's Place
This Ongoing War (seconded)
jgcesaeria.com 
Point of No Return

Best Arabic media watchdog
MEMRI (seconded)
Palestinian Media Watch (seconded)

Best NGO watchdog:
NGO Monitor (seconded)
UN Watch (seconded)
Eye on the UN

Best video:
Pat Condell, Israel and the United Nations (seconded)
The Red Line
Zionism without Jerusalem
The Children are Ready
The Rhythm of Israel
Real Apartheid in the Middle East (Stand With Us) (seconded)
IDF aid Missions around the world

Best speech:
Bibi UN speech on Iranian nukes (seconded)
Ron Prosor at UN (seconded)
The Legal Case for Israel - Eugene Kontorovich (seconded)

Best article:
Richard Millett Save the children…except when they're Israeli.
Douglas Murray On Boycotting Israel
Daniel Pipes and Steven Rosen, Lessening UNRWA's Damage
Alan Dershowitz, Terrorism and Palestinian Statehood
Barry Rubin: Why Did the Arabs Suffer "Nakba" (Disaster) in 1948 and Every Day Since? The Surprising View of the Man Who Coined That Term

Best "own goal":
Greta Berlin's anti-semitism exposed (seconded)
Norman Finkelstein calling BDS a "cult"
Jon Donnison of BBC tweeting photo of dead kid from wrong war

Best foreign-language blog:
Presspectiva
Best specific example of Hasbara:
IDF New Media during Pillar of Defense (seconded)
The truth about how Mahmoud Sadallah was killed (seconded)
(Any article, video, speech listed can also be nominated for this category)
Avi Mayer's piece on 'Haaretz and Apartheid'

Best "talkbacker"

Willingness to confront the enemy
Richard Millett (seconded)
Jonathan Hoffman

The Muslim Brotherhood torture chambers

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 07:15 AM PST

From Al Masry al-Youm, translated by Al Monitor (via Daily Caller)
Al-Masry Al-Youm spent three hours in total in the torture chambers established by the Muslim Brotherhood at the gates of the Ittihadiya Palace in the suburb of Heliopolis. The central torture chamber, which is located in front of the gate facing the Omar Ibn Abdel Aziz Mosque on al-Merghany Street, is secured with a cordon and iron barriers, where the Central Security Forces (CSF) prevent the access of any persons without the authorization of the Brotherhood.

We entered the chamber with a great difficulty, after a fellow journalist from the Misr 25 TV channel facilitated. The channel is owned by the Brotherhood. There are brigades and police officers in military uniforms, as well as others in civilian clothes from al-Nozha police station, who oversee the beatings, whippings and torture. Fifteen others from the group, distinguished by their strong bodies, are supervised by three bearded and well-dressed men who decide who will be in the chamber and who may leave, even if the person is a member of the Brotherhood.
The torture process starts once a demonstrator who opposes President Mohammed Morsi is arrested in the clashes or is suspected after the clashes end, and the CSF separate Morsi's supporters from his opponents. Then, the group members trade off punching, kicking and beating him with a stick on the face and all over his body. They tear off his clothes and take him to the nearest secondary torture chamber, from which CSF personnel, members of the Interior Ministry and the State Security Investigations Services (SSIS) are absent.

It is hard to determine how many locations there are, given that the torture chambers are established as near as possible to where a person is arrested. Before the interrogation process starts, they search him, seize his funds, cellphones or ID, all the while punching and slapping his face in order to get him to confess to being a thug and working for money.

They ask him why he took to the street, whether he got paid to take part in the protest and whether he supports Mohamed ElBaradei, founder of the Constitution Party, or Hamdeen Sabahi, founder of the Egyptian Popular Current or the dissolved Egyptian Nationalist movement. As long as this person denies the allegations, they beat him and insult his parents. After that, a person will videotape the interrogation and contact the Misr 25 TV channel to tell them about the interrogation and arrest.

After a while, the detainee is transported from the secondary torture chamber to the central one. On his way, the beatings and insults continue. Every time the prisoner encounters a member of the Brotherhood, that person gets in his share of the insults and beatings.

The health conditions of some of the prisoners was very bad and they were unable to answer questions. Some of them were bleeding all over their bodies, severely exhausted and not receiving any medical aid. However, some got a bottle of water to drink or something to use to stop their bleeding.
Any further questions about Egypt's new, moderate, moral Islamist leadership?

Yes? You in the back? Freedom of the press? OK:

From Egypt Independent:
The presidential office filed a complaint on Monday accusing privately-owned Youm7's editor-in-chief Khaled Salah and journalist Ola al-Shafie of slandering President Mohamed Morsy.

The complaint was based on an op-ed in the paper about the clashes at the presidential palace, when supporters of Morsy and the Muslim Brotherhood descended on an opposition sit-in against the constitutional declaration and the referendum on the draft constitution.

Shafie alleges in her article that the Muslim Brotherhood was responsible for killing six people and torturing various political activists. The president's office claims the article defames the president.

The Muslim Brotherhood denies the allegations, claiming that all those killed or injured in the clashes were in fact Brotherhood members, despite video footage and protester testimony demonstrating that members of the Muslim Brotherhood were involved in torturing protesters before handing them over to the police.

Media and human rights watchdogs have expressed concern over the increasing intimidation of journalists who have critiqued the ruling regime.

Media presenter Mohamed Saad was released on bail last week after being interrogated on allegations of insulting the president. Also last week, the broadcast of presenter Hala Fahmy's show was cut when she criticized the president on air, and she was later referred to the public prosecution.
Nothing to see here.

Hamas march at Birzeit U (video)

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 05:30 AM PST

Ahead of the planned Hamas rally in Nablus this Thursday, Hamas students marched in Birzeit University yesterday:



Birzeit is a hotbed of Hamas terror support in the West Bank, and it recently hosted an "art exhibit" celebrating terrorism in the form of rockets aimed at civilians.

Earlier this year, Islamist students threatened a Birzeit professor for cartoons he posted outside his office that they deemed offensive. The university refused to punish the students and may have pushed the professor out of his job.

(h/t Yoel)

Gazan call to break humanitarian law - in front of ICRC

Posted: 11 Dec 2012 02:50 AM PST

Terrorist Leila Khaled, who has been visiting Gaza for the past week, called for Palestinian Arabs to kidnap more Israeli soldiers to hold them hostage for more prisoner swaps.

Speaking in front of a group of families of terrorists in Israeli prison, Khaled said that "resistance" is the only way to get them released.

Taking hostages is a war crime under international humanitarian law.

But the venue for Khaled's call for this war crime was in front of the International Committees of the Red Cross in Gaza - an organization dedicated to upholding international humanitarian law!

The irony of using the ICRC as a stage to call for war crimes is apparently lost on Gazans.

Hamas has recently made similar calls to perform the war crime of taking hostages. The media ignored it, of course, as it has ignored Khaled's call today.
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