שתי גדות לירדן Shtay Gadot LaYarden, From Shiloh

Last Sunday we attended a gala Betar reunion in the Jerusalem Theater, and part of the program was singing the old Betar songs. Of course, שתי גדות לירדן Shtay Gadot LaYarden, Both/Two Sides of the Jordan was included.

I always get a kick out of that song. I always wonder if there's anyone besides us whose house faces that very view. Our house faces east. That's why I can take pictures of the sunrise. East of Shiloh is the Jordan Valley, and east of that is the Jordan River. And on the other side of the Jordan River is the British invented Hashemite "Kingdom" of Jordan, which is on the eastern bank of the river.

Yes, on a clear day or night, we can see both sides of the Jordan from our house, including lights at night. Sorry for illustrating this post with a morning photo, which doesn't the eastern mountains.

Sovereignty Now!

Here in Israel we've been living in a dangerous absurdity for over fifty 50 years.

In June, 1967, against all odds and predictions, not only did the State of Israel survive the war which began with vicious threats of annihilation from Egypt's Gamal Nasser, who had galvanized the Arab world and easily got the United Nations to withdraw its Peacekeeping Forces, but when the dust settled after battles on three fronts, lasting less than a week, Israel was victorious.

In all honesty, to say that "Israel was victorious" is an understatement. Not only did the State of Israel defeat the three neighboring countries which had attacked, Egypt, Syria and Jordan, but the IDF Israel Defense Forces liberated land on all three fronts.

On the Egyptian front, the unpopulated Sinai desert and Gaza fell into Israeli hands, as the Egyptian soldiers rapidly fled back to Egypt. On the northern front with Syria, Israel succeeded in pushing the Syrians out of the Golan Heights, which has drastically improved the security of northern Israel, most notably the agricultural communities which had suffered greatly from Syrian attacks over the years. And most significant was that Jordan lost what they had referred to as the "west bank," land they had illegally occupied and didn't develop since the 1949 ceasefire. In the UN Partition Plan, that area was supposed to be an additional invented* Arab state.

Davka, the land liberated from Jordan is the Biblical Land of Israel, where most of Ancient Jewish History had taken place. Besides Beersheva, which Israel has held and developed since the establishment of the State of of Israel, the other main Biblical cities, Shechem, Hebron, Shiloh and Walled Jerusalem were all liberated from the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan in June, 1967.

For some inexplicable, fokokt reason, instead of annexing and declaring full sovereignty over all of that miraculously liberated Land, like any normal country would do, Israeli leaders decided to hold it to use as "payment" for "peace" with our enemies. On the whole, our enemies haven't taken the bribe.

Egypt, under Nasser's successor Sadaat, did accept the Sinai sans Gaza in exchange for what could be called a "cold peace." The price for Israel was extremely high, since it involved the destruction of Jewish communities and the forced exile of their Jewish residents.

The Golan, where there are many Jewish communities, can't be given away without endangering northern Israel. And considering the instability and violence in Syria, the truth is that not even the Arabs in the area really want change.

For some totally mystifying reason, Israeli politicians have been claiming that it's possible to allow a "State of Palestine," sic to established in some of Judea Samaria without causing danger to the State of Israel and the Jewish communities which would be "permitted" to remain. This questionable policy, which is now supported by people all over the world, has caused a dangerous instability and uncertainty among the local Arabs. It has davka pushed them into allying with Arab terrorists. That's because  it's clear to them that if Israel, Gd forbid, leaves, the terrorists will rule.

Sorry Charlie, as the saying goes, but without a strong Israeli presence, not only will Arab terror rage and rule, but the State of Israel would be in serious danger. And obviously, Israel can't buy peace for Land.

The only way we can start on the road to peace is by imposing Israeli Sovereignty on all of the Land Israel controls, including what had been given to the PA-Palestinian Authority.

Sovereignty Now!

Shiloh, Israel

This is my new facebook cover photo, which I produced for 52Frames "Hello From..." challenge. Following is what I wrote:

"Shiloh, Israel"
One of the downsides of being a longtime member of 52Frames is finding a new angle to this challenge. That's why instead of using a picture I took of our iconic Tabernacle Synagogue, based on the Biblical Tabernacle which stood here in Shiloh for almost four hundred years, or the area of the Biblical Shiloh, I looked for a different view. I shot east from the archeological site, but I wasn't fully satisfied with the photo. Then today I was in Jerusalem and photographed an Israeli flag, flying outside a store. Yes, I used the double exposure tool in snapseed to combine a picture of western Shiloh with an Israeli flag. It may be kitschy, but I like it. Sometimes patriotism is kitschy at times, but it's not a crime. Modern Shiloh is celebrating forty-one years this week, perfect timing.

*To this day, there has never been a history of unity, peoplehood among those Arabs living west of the Jordan river. To be perfectly honest, until Great Britain brought the Hashemites in to occupy and rule Transjordan, east of the Jordan River, there had never been an independent country, society, culture, people etc there either.

"Palestine," sic, is a "Toy!"

The Jerusalem Post had a feature article in its Friday edition titled:

ARE PALESTINIANS READY TO TELL ‘SUPPORTERS’: ‘WE'RE NOT YOUR TOY’?

No surprise, but the writer got the whole "Palestinian thing" all wrong, because it didn't get to the gut/history of the issue.

"Palestine" is the Barbie Doll, the toy invented by anti-Semitic Europeans and British who were determined to sabotage the Zionist efforts to promote Jewish Nationalism and its aim of re-establishing a Jewish State in the Biblical Holyland.

There is absolutely no history of a Palestine, people, nation, culture. And the so-called Kingdom of Jordan is even a bigger fake, invention. The British moved the Hashemites in, even though the land east of the Jordan River was supposed to be part of the Jewish state, and anointed them rulers over the nomads residing there. This was in direct contravention of the Mandate, the assignment the British had been given by the League of Nations.

But as you most probably have noticed, the world didn't care. It's very similar to the way the world powers, at the same basic time, reacted to the rising antisemitism and violence against Jews in Nazi Germany.

And after World War Two, the British did everything in their power to keep Europe's surviving Jews out of the Holyland, while simultaneously helping to strengthen the Arabs.

Yes, there was a United Nations vote November 29, 1947, supporting the establishment of a Jewish State, but it had no "teeth." The Jews would have to survive a "fire test," a war during which surrounding Arabs, armed and trained by the British, would attack them. The UN suggested a further division of land between Jews and Arabs for another new Arab state. They drew a map assigning small amounts of land in various disconnected locations for the "Jewish State." The Jewish Agency accepted it, despite the dangerous borders, but the Arabs refused insisting on more.

After the ceasefire in 1949, Jordan illegally occupied the land not in Jewish hands, including half of Jerusalem. No surprise, that there were no formal complaints by the world powers of the time or from the United Nations.

In the decades since, these same countries, diplomats and NGOs have been creating their Barbie doll, financing "her" every whim, paying for everything and turning a blind eye when their toy literally terrorizes Israel. And in 1967 when the Arab countries surrounding Israel gathered their forces and threatened destruction of the Jewish State, nobody cared or tried to stop them. The State of Israel fought a brilliant and miraculous war in which not only did it survive but it liberated all the land to the Jordan River, the Sinai and the Golan Heights. Only then did the world get angry. World powers, NGOs etc got angry with the State of Israel. And then their toy, the so-called "Palestinians" were given a makeover to look moderate and deserving.

The  so-called "Palestinians" are a toy. It never would have existed if other countries hadn't invented it. It's no more than a bloody Barbie doll.

Two 2 State "Solution" Oxymoron

The meaning of the word Oxymoron:

a figure of speech by which a locution produces an incongruous, seemingly self-contradictory effect

Since two states aren't a solution to the violence here between the Arabs and Israel, the "Two 2 State Solution is an Oxymoron for sure.

Our Arab enemies, the terrorists, the PA-Palestinian Authority etcetera all reject the continued viable existence of the State of Israel, it's clear that giving them a state will only cause more wars, terrorism and bloodshed. Taking that simple basic fact into account, then it's clear that according to the basic Arab aim, there can never be peace, a solution, with two states, one Israel and one Palestine. I don't even think that there can be two peaceful states if they are Jordan and Palestine. And don't forget that Jordan practices ethnic cleansing, apartheid against Jews. Besides Israeli tourists, who are very restricted, foreigners who don't admit to be Jewish and the Israeli diplomats, you're not going to find many or any Jews in Jordan.

And the Hashemite rulers/occupiers of Transjordan aka Jordan aren't at all enthusiastic about giving the so-called Palestinians more authority, weapons, recognition a "state," because that struggling kingdom has been threatened by the same Arab terrorists who terrorize Israel.

For decades, various international leaders, NGOs etc have been trying to succeed in facilitating a negotiated "peace deal" between Israel and the so-called Palestinians. Sometimes they "help" by offering very detailed suggestions. Various Israeli leaders have even offered to endanger the State of Israel for the "chance" of "peace." But the Arabs just up their demands.

That's because the Arabs prefer their cushy well-paid terrorism. The UN, EU and number NGOs and foreign countries support them very generously. Those Arabs aren't a people nor a nation; they're just in it for the money.

Let the Flag of the State of Israel wave in freedom and security, Gd willing!

Stunning Old City Renovations Masks Jordan's Destruction

Yesterday when I was wandering around Jerusalem's Old City, there was more than music on Mount Zion. I found myself walking into the very old Ramban Synagogue, which is in the center of what today is called the Jewish Quarter. I don't think I had been there for almost half a century.

My memories of the Ramban Synagogue in the Old City of Jerusalem is of a ruin, walking down and although there was no artificial light, still seeing the old pillars. There was just dirt on the floor. If it had been paved in stones, I didn't notice or remember. Those are my memories of the place.

As you can see from the above photos, the synagogue has been reconstructed, and those pillars are in use. The floor now has well-kept tiles. There's furniture, and the Ramban Synagogue is in use for prayer. That's rather bittersweet for me. I'm glad that there's a Jewish community using that ancient location/building for what it was constructed, but it's one of the buildings, holy sites, the Jordanians had defiled and destructed during their nineteen 19 year illegal occupation of the Old City, from 1948 until the miraculous 1967 Six Days War.

When it was announced that the "Churba "Hurva" Synagogue" would be reconstructed, many people protested the decision. The reason was that it was/is important not to hide the immoral actions of the Jordanians during their illegal occupation. 

During yesterday's walk, everything looked "too pretty." There are museums depicting very ancient Jerusalem and Jewish History, but I didn't see anything to remind us of the cruelty of the Jordanians.

Two State "Solution," Dead or Hibernating?

Note that in the title and here, I put the word "solution" in quotation marks. That's because I don't see that "two states" would be a "solution" to the "conflict in the Middle East." The use of quotation marks indicates that I'm "distancing myself" from the words, because I consider it inaccurate. For added emphasis "solution" also is italicized.

Just a little history...

• There is absolutely no history of a group of people called Palestine.
• Only one people/nation ever had an independent country kingdom in this part of the world, the Jewish People.
• Many invaders occupied this part of the middle east, and other times it was leaderless, stateless.
• In its two thousand years of exile from The Land, the Jewish People still focused on returning. Jewish Prayers, Holidays, theology and Bible are all centered on The Land of Israel.

The Arabs who have been named as Palestinian have no unified history. They are just united in their support for terrorism against Jews and Israel. They also don't really want to be responsible for their own independent state, or they would have been happy to negotiate with Israel and come to some sort of agreement. Over the decades, they've been offered fantastic conditions, including plenty of land and financial backing, but they've always refused.

An independent country requires taking responsibility for one's population, and the terrorists prefer to continue their corrupt ways.

And now, finally even some international leaders, media, etc. are finally seeing the turth, though they've come to it in rather confused and peculiar ways:

Donald Trump has ruined any chance of a two-state solution in the Israel-Palestine conflict – and the American public knows it
Labor Party Lawmaker Draws Fire Over Call to Annex Major Israeli Settlement Blocs

Hat tip West Bank Jewish Population Stats Report

New Plugat Hakotel Exhibit, Museum, Movie

It's hard to categorize the newest venue in Jerusalem's Old City, the Plugat Hakotel. It's called a "museum," but there aren't really any exhibits. And unlike most every other museum, there's no walking around, so it's very good for those who find standard museums difficult to handle.

The Plugat Hakotel Museum is in the building of the historic Plugat Hakotel, on Rechov Hayehudim near the corner of Plugat Hakotel Street, where the patrols that protected Jewish worshipers at the Kotel almost a hundred years ago were quartered. The street level rooms have been set up to show a very good historic reenactment movie, which tells the basic story, fictionalized of course.

Yesterday I went to the Plugat Hakotel Museum with a group of friends from all over the country. It's best to call in advance to book a time slot.

We saw the English dubbed version of the movie which had Hebrew subtitles. It is very well written and acted and tells how members of the Betar Zionist youth movement, inspired by Zeev Jabotinsky worked together to not only guard Jewish worshipers but risk jail time by blowing the shofar at the end of the Yom Kippur fast. Yes, the British forbade shofar blowing.

For me this building has special meaning, because it was our first home in Israel, Maon Betar. We knew the history of it, but at that time, the Old City was undergoing major repairs to make it more habitable and modern. Just now, a half a century after being liberated from illegal Jordanian occupation has the museum been opened.

Shofar in the Plugat Hakotel Museum, Old City Jerusalem

Two Pictures that Meant Most to Me at Beit Hatfutsot

Last week I visited Museum of the Jewish People - Beit Hatfutsot as part of the senior citizens program in the Ofra Girls High School, Ulpanat Ofra, with the students who worked with us on our oral histories. As we were all taken from exhibit to exhibit, we were told to look with our student and choose what means the most to us.

Here are two things that meant a lot to me:

This Life Magazine article was tucked away among other things, which is a shame. This article tells of the illegal Jordanian Occupation from 1949-1967, when Jews were forbidden to go to their Holy Places in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and more. There was a border, and the Jordanians also shot at Jewish neighborhoods. The world didn't care.

I took a selfie of myself next to this picture of children leaving a boat docked in an Israeli port, making aliyah. We made aliyah by boat, but as a young married couple, almost twenty years after the photo had been taken.

It's such a strange feeling to know that my life is considered part of Jewish History. I really don't feel that old, but in my head, I know that what others learn as history I experienced and/or remember being part of.

Migron, Still Counting

Migron is/was a quiet community in a great location, just off Highway 60, north of Sha'ar Binyamin and the turnoff to Psagot, Kochav Yaakov and Tel Tzion, across from the southern end of the Alon Road. It's not far from Jerusalem, and many young families were living there in temporary homes. But instead of building permanent homes, a nuisance case was brought by Peace Now, the anti-Jewish settlement group claiming to represent "true Arab owners*," and the Israeli Lefit courts ordered Migron to be destroyed and moved.

In compensation, the government promised that the residents would get a new totally approved location, and while waiting they would be set up in state of the art caravillot (temporary prefabricated homes) nearby. This "temporary" setup has been going on for quite a few years already. The community set up a large electric sign, which you can see below. It shows the amount of days Migron has been waiting for a new location and permanent homes.

Yesterday when I passed by the number had reached 2,142 days exiled and waiting. That is why so many of us do not consider the present Israeli Government coalition to be Right, pro-Jewish rights/settlement. The truth is that we have no one to vote for. The most reliably pro-Jewish rights/settlement party is Jewish Home, but the coalition agreement/conditions really ties the hands of the more dedicated Knesset Members. Bibi sure knows how to write a very tight contract, and nothing can be done effectively by a party out of the coalition.

The real problem is that the Israeli High Court makes policy according to the judges' ideology and doesn't decide according to law. Justice Minister Ayelet Shaked, Jewish Home, is trying hard to change this, but it isn't easy and will take a long time.

*The so-called owners had been offered land by Jordan on the condition that within a certain period of time they developed it. But prior to the 1967 Six Days War, when Jordan was illegally occupying land west of the Jordan River until the Israeli border, they did nothing to make the areas habitable. Nobody was interested in living or investing here. The "gifts of land" were considered worthless. All of the modern infrastructure, electricity, water, sewer, telephone etc have been built by Israel, post Six Days War.

Ambassador Bolton's "3 State" Peace Proposal, Nonsensical

This was also posted on Israel Blogger.

Ambassador Bolton addressing the Ingeborg Rennert Center's Guardian of Zion Award dinner

As I already blogged on A Jewish Grandmother, my husband and I attended the Ingeborg Rennert Center's Guardian of Zion Award Dinner last night. So, besides the food, the real highlight of the evening was the speech by Award winner, former US Ambassador to the United Nations John  Bolton.

Since the dinner was also attended by many much more knowledgeable and respected writers than myself,  such as Caroline Glick, Ruthie Blum and Jerusalem Post Editor in Chief Yaakov Katz, (all of whom I do have some sort of personal connection,) I await their reports. No doubt that we will read them, most probably in the Friday editions of actual Israeli newspapers. One of the reasons I've embraced blogging so enthusiastically is that I can make my own deadlines and rules about what gets posted and when.

The crowd at the dinner was international, speaking a multitude of languages among themselves, but the program was in English. Our table was so overfull of diners that we had to put the bread plates in the center so our plates could lie flat and not spill over. There were screens and loudspeakers all over, since we filled two adjoining rooms.

As Bolton began his speech, there was almost a standing ovation when he said:

"...the Two State Solution has failed."

So, it was clear that no matter how diverse the crowd seemed, we did agree on that very basic fact. Every time he mentioned the failure of the Two State Solution, he was greeted with enthusiastic applause. But after that, his ideas fell flat, like a souffle taken out of the oven too early and greeted with a bang.

Bolton's "peace" proposal, what he calls the "Three State solution," IMHO, is as dangerous, fokokt and unworkable as all the versions of the Two State one. The three states in Bolton's proposal are Israel, Egypt and Jordan. Please note, that Bolton, unless I missed it, didn't mention the Golan Heights at all. His proposal only deals with what he calls "the West Bank," sic, and Gaza.

At my table quite a few of us were mumbling to each other how unrealistic, and possibly illegal, as it contradicts prior Israeli treaties with those countries, Bolton's proposal actually is. The crux of Bolton's plan is that the so-called West Bank should somehow be divided between Israel and Jordan. And of course, the idea of a country called "Palestine," sic, should be scrapped completely. Bolton totally ignores the Israeli Treaty with Jordan,  in which Jordan gave up claims to it. Remember that during the nineteen years of illegal occupation, Jordan did absolutely nothing to develop the area. In 1967, when Israel liberated it, there was no proper electricity, piped water, sewer system, modern telephones etc. Only the State of Israel has invested and upgraded the area. Arab residents have no desire to return to Hashemite rule. And the Hashemites, aka Jordan, aren't interested in them either.

Besides the lack of Jordanian identity among the Arabs here, making safe, secure and sensible borders between Israel and Bolton's fantasy entity are impossibly unrealistic, exactly like it would be with the Two State idea.

Bolton's belief that Egypt is interested in Gaza is so far from historic reality, I really wonder about his knowledge and sanity. If Egypt had wanted it, then Sadaat would have taken it when Menachem Begin gave him the Sinai. Post-Camp David, Egypt sure fought hard for the Taba resort and got that. Egypt has enough stability problems, and the last thing it wants is the responsibility of ruling Hamas supporting Gaza.

There were some excellent things in what Bolton said, which is similar to things I wrote periodically, such as that the basis for most countries' support of Palestine is their wish that the State of Israel disappear. And I truly wish that Bolton had given a speech on that topic rather than trying his hand at a "peace" proposal. Haven't people realized that succeeding in making "peace"with the Arab terrorists here is as impossible as conquering all of Russia...

We're Here to Stay!

I just want to make things clear.

Many people all over the world seem to think of me, my neighbors and other Jews living in various towns and cities in Judea, Samaria, the Jordan Valley and Golan Heights as easily movable pawns or checker pieces.

Part of the Shiloh School Campus

• First of all, it's not true, and 
• second of all, we are already over  half a million Jews
• Considering that many of the communities are about forty years old already, a second and in some caceas a third generation is already raising its family, building homes, schools and businesses in our communities. 

Senior Citizen activities

Today, unlike when we first moved to Shiloh over thirty-five years ago, life in Judea/Samaria is very self-sufficient. One doesn't have to cross the so-called "green line" for almost anything except if you need a hospital. Although we have lots of medical clinics in the "yishuvim," communities and cities, no hospital has been built yet. Remember that the Hadassah Hospital on Mount Scopus was technically "Israel" during the Jordanian Occupation from 1949-1967.

New homes in Shiloh

fruit in local Shiloh supermarket

There are banks and government offices in the cities and communities. Of course we have all sorts of stores, schools, industries, university, business and more. And since the retirement community/age group is now growing very rapidly, as the pioneers of thirty-forty years ago are now "senior citizens," there are lots of programs for us.

And after almost a half a century after the 1967 Six Days War, even middle-aged Israelis have no idea what the country was like before the war, when it suffered constant terror by Jordan, Syria and Egypt from the other side of the "Armistice lines.

Yes, no doubt that We're Here to Stay!