Goyishe Chutzpah!

I've always opposed the celebration of the 29th of November, 1947, when the infant, newly established, United Nations voted "approval" of a Jewish State. This "state" they approved of was to have such absurd borders that its days were numbered, since it wouldn't be viable. 

A short few decades before the Balfour Declaration had declared that the British Mandate would establish a Jewish State in what they called Palestine, which was then an undeveloped piece of Land on both sides of the Jordan River. At that point there was trickle of Jews trying to establish agricultural settlements and bring the barren land back to life. 

There had always been a Jewish presence in various cities, even after the destruction of the Second Holy Temple. Zionist pioneers began changing the Jewish attitude towards Jewish sovereignty. The Arab communities were mostly in a few Arab cities and villages, plus some nomads. There was no history of local Arab nationalism.

Great Britain went against its mandate to establish a Jewish State in the land by bringing in a foreign clan, the Hashemites, and invented the kingdom of Jordan sic on the eastern bank of the Jordan River. And then to make matters even worse for the Jewish People, the members of the United Nations decided to invent a second Arab to share the western side of the Jordan River with Israel. But as I stated earlier, nobody expected the Jewish State to survive. That made it easy for countries to vote on the 29th of November, 1947, for a Jewish State. Because the truth is that those countries didn't really want a Jewish State to exist. Maybe a few did think a Jewish State should exist, but that nascent state wasn't given a fighting chance. Britain armed the Arabs and trained them in warfare, and no country gave the State of Israel any help.

Here we are seventy-five 75 years later, and things haven't changed much. The United Nations condemns Israel more than it condemns any other country, and our so-called allies are having fits because Israel hasn't returned land to the Jordanian aggressor from the 1967 Six Day War. They call Israel an apartheid country, but insist that Judea/Samaria be free of Jews. The latest is that they're condemning Israel for giving recognition to a few Jewish communities. They act like they're our bosses, and that they have approval rights for what we do. 

Goyishe Chutzpah for Sure!

A new building project in Shvut Rachel, just east of Shiloh

Eurovision: Israel's "Toy" Not to be Pushed Around

Please don't think I posted this on Shiloh Musings, my "political/serious blog" by mistake. If you'll read the post, you'll understand.

Not everyone in Israel stayed up all night to follow the Eurovision final including the count which gave Israel's Netta first place. I woke up to the exciting news.





I got a real kick out of the costume Israel's Netta Barzalai chose to wear to sing her song "Toy" at Eurovision. Once I saw that she was wearing a Japanese style Geisha* girl outfit in the "semi-final," I saw more than a flaky, clucking, attention-getting performer. You shouldn't be surprised to know that I had never heard of Netta Barzalai before reading all sorts of negative things on news sites and social media. And it has also been years since I had paid any attention to to Eurovision or Israel's songs for it. Honestly I don't like this modern "music," which is more performance than anything I can sing and dance to.

Israel's first two Eurovision wins, which were consecutive, were lovely clean-cut, singable and dance-able tunes, Abanibi and Halleluya. Both suited the classic Israeli folk song/dance genre perfectly, including the chosen costumes. In the following years, Israel got a few good results, but didn't win again until Dana International, the most well-known transgender in the country pulled off first place. Since then nothing until last night.

It had been considered impossible with the anti-Israel sentiment/policy in Europe for Israel to get enough top votes to win, no matter how good the song/performance.

Apparently the "show" and lyrics of "Toy" broke the hold of the BDS and other anti-Israel groups.



I don't know if Netta and whoever is responsible for the lyrics and geisha get-up intended the extra/additional meaning I hear in her song.

*gei·shaˈɡāSHə/
noun

noun: geisha; plural noun: geishas; plural noun: geisha; noun: geisha girl; plural noun: geisha girls

a Japanese hostess trained to entertain men with conversation, dance, and song.

The role of a geisha is to be a toy to entertain men who pay for their time and services, so the costume is brilliantly ironic. Add that to the obvious fact that Netta is a "big woman," plus size to put it mildly. It's clear that she won't starve herself into submission.

Davka, the timing of Eurovision this year is so siyata d'Shmaya, Hand of Gd. We in Israel are celebrating seventy  70 years of Independence and a half a century of our miraculous 1967 Six Days War victory which left us with all of Jerusalem in our hands.

Most of the world thinks of Israel as a "toy" of its making, because the United Nations voted its approval of the establishment of the state November 29, 1947. The declarations and policies against Israel, including the refusal to recognize Jerusalem as our Capital City are unprecedented, something that never happens to any other country.

The State of Israel is nobody's "toy." Today we are truly a world power, yes, little Israel. Tomorrow the United States of America is finally opening its Embassy in Jerusalem. US President Trump has defied precedent and the State Department. He is the first American President to follow through on a very popular campaign promise. Many of his predecessors campaigned that they'd move the embassy, but they didn't.

Today is Jerusalem Day, the date on the Jewish Calendar when a large part of our Historic, Biblical Homeland was liberated in the 1967 Six Days War after thousands of years of occupation, most recently by Jordan.

Chag Jerusalem and Shiloh Sameach!!! 

Celebrating 29/11/1947 and Balfour Encourage Disrespect of Israel

Celebrating the "29th of November" and the Balfour Declaration give too much credit to foreign bodies for the establishment and existence of the State of Israel. By thanking and crediting them, we've given them defacto "ownership" over the State of Israel.

Neither of these events happened on its own. They were both results of the revolutionary efforts of reborn Jewish Nationalism aka Zionism. And if it weren't for the efforts of Zionist leaders all over the world and the dedicated Zionists who made aliyah and struggled on the ground to establish Jewish communities, farms, businesses in our ancient Biblical Homeland, then Balfour never would have written that short historic letter, and the United Nations General Assembly wouldn't have ever discussed and voted for recognition of a Jewish State anyplace in the world.

All the thanks and praise should be going to those brave, daring and hearty Jewish visionaries, the pioneers, the chalutzim, who brought life back to our precious Land after two thousand years of desertion. Look at the word "desertion."

desertion

In it is the word "desert." And the verb is to "desert," which means to make something a "desert."

Even after the exile and expulsion, Jews have always lived in the Land of Israel and especially Jerusalem. Yearning for the Holy City is in the center of Jewish Prayers.

Today, over a hundred years after the beginning of the Zionist Movement, the movement of Jews to return to our historic homeland, that desert has changed into a rich fertile country.

For three thousand years, the capital of the Jewish Nation, the center of our spiritual and political peoplehood has been Jerusalem. No other people can say that. We Jews can prove it.

Is there any other country in the world for which foreign countries and international bodies refuse to recognize its Capital City? Can you list a few, please?

Where's our pride? Why do we keep begging for minimal recognition? The State of Israel must take suitable responses against all of the countries that refuse to give our Capital City, Jerusalem its due respect. And it shouldn't phase us that we'll be going against every single country in the world. They are just proving their underlying antisemistism guised in all sorts of faux-history and perverse morality.

As I've written many times before, the most simple response is to move all Israeli embassies from whatever city the country claims as its capital. Tell them tit for tat. If they refuse to recognize Jerusalem as Jewish and exclusively Israeli, then we don't recognize the city they call its capital.

The actual existence and survival of the State of Israel and victories in our wars were not because of any help we got from these countries.

• We never had a true ally. 
• We fought our wars unassisted by others.

Gd is our only true ally, and He gave us our Land and Jerusalem forever and evermore. 

The Balfour Declaration, A Positive Result of Zionism

There are lots of celebrations going on for the one-hundredth anniversary of the Balfour Declaration. That historic document is also being blamed for the establishment of the State of Israel, as if it just came out of the blue, when written a hundred years ago.

In another month, there will be similar celebrations of the seventieth anniversary of the United Nations vote approving the establishment and recognition of the State of Israel. Both of these actions are given much too much credit by Jews, Israelis and historians.

I must make two important points, and it's impossibly difficult for me to rank them in importance. If you have an opinion on that, I'd appreciate if you say so in the comments, thanks.

• As laudable as both the Balfour Declaration and its international recognition, and as commendable and reassuring as the November 29, 1947, United Nations vote for the establishment of a Jewish State certainly were, it is mandatory to remember that both were results of Political Zionism. They didn't happen in a vacuum. Neither was spontaneous, nor did they come from a love of the Jewish People.
• The establishment and existence of the State of Israel and the eternal survival of the Jewish People are not dependent on foreign powers. One mustn't exaggerate the contribution of others to our existence. The thankfulness and gratefulness owed to Balfour and the United Nations member states that voted yes in that crucial vote must not dwarf the thanks we give to Gold Almighty.  Remember that our survival over the millennia and the incomparable military victories of the State of Israel over our enemies are due solely to Gd. We have no human, political, diplomatic or military allies.

We, the Jewish People, hold our fate in our hands. We aren't pawns of anyone. That actually includes Gd, because we have free will. We must make our own decisions, and sometimes we decide correctly, and sometimes we don't. Gd willing we will quickly learn from our mistakes and correct them. IMHO, one of those mistakes is thanking man rather than Gd for the good that has happened to us.

Yom Ha'atzmaut, Israeli Independence Day Prayers in Shiloh Tabernacle Synagogue 

Jerusalem is Israel's Eternal Capital City!

I 💗 JERUSALEM
Zion Square, Jerusalem

The insulting behavior of the world against Israel must end:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has told senior ministers he is lifting restrictions on settlement building in East Jerusalem, a statement said on Sunday, immediately after the city's municipal government approved permits for the building of hundreds of new homes in the area. (Reuters)

It is really up to us. No normal self-respecting country would stand for it. Jerusalem has been the capital, most important city for the Jewish People since King David thousands of years ago. No other people or country or kingdom has ever had that relationship with Jerusalem. Actually no other indigenous people have ever had an independent country/kingdom here. Yes, there were invaders and occupiers like Hadrian, the Assyrians, the Greeks, Romans, Crusaders, Turks and the British who had been assigned by the League of Nations to facilitate the establishment of a Jewish State here.

But the British sabotaged the plans by severely restricting entry to Jews and trying to invent Arab "nations" to occupy the Land, which had been known as Palestine-Transjordan. They invited the foreign desert tribe of the Hashemites to occupy the eastern bank of the Jordan and invented the "Kingdom of Jordan," which has no historic roots whatsoever.

November 29, 1947, the newly minted United Nations General Assembly rather half-heartedly voted to approve the establishment of a Jewish State in just a sliver of what remained of the British Mandate. At the same time it supported the establishment of an additional Arab State in most of what remained west of of the Jordan River. The Arabs were given military superiority and security, since they had the mountain range, which also was the Historic Heartland of the Jewish Nation and History.

Here we are almost seventy 70 years later, after many wars during which Israel has proven its superiority in all ways except for one. Although we have consistently and miraculously defeated our enemies, we still act like the world is doing us a favor by letting us exist. Today in the 21st Century there isn't a single country that honors and respects us properly by having its embassy in our "Capital City Jerusalem. And instead of taking steps/sanctions against them by retaliating in kind, and probably saving billions of dollars over the years, by locating our embassies in the cities of our choice, rather than capitals, we just let them insult us and our history.

Some of you will want to comment that they are sure that the United States will be moving its embassy to Jerusalem. Sorry, but until it actually happens, I just don't believe it.

Deja Vu, America Only Recognizes Tel Aviv

I'm pretty jaded when it comes to politics, whether Israeli, American or any other country's. I see political leaders as glorified self-promoting actors. They'll say anything for applause and votes, not quite in that order. Most have a crew of accomplished speechwriters who can tailor words to suit the audience. And that is why during American Presidential campaigns we pretty much always hear:

"If elected, I will move the American Embassy to Israel's Capital City, JERUSALEM!" {Applause and standing ovation.}

For decades, it has been a mantra, a rite of passage when visiting Israel or speaking to certain Jewish organizations in the quest to be nominated and then elected President of the United States of America. It's rare for anyone to be elected without reciting those magic words.

Ivanka and Jared Kushner on Succot
a few years ago.
credit

Davka, I don't think that Donald Trump actually did say it, but his Jewish daughter, Ivanka, did:

Ivanka Trump says her father will move US embassy to Jerusalem ‘100%’ if elected

But I wouldn't hold my breath. Nothing personal against President Elect Trump, but in order to move the American Embassy, he's have to lobotomize/reprogram/restaff the perennially anti-Israel State Department and first officially recognize Jewish/Israeli sovereignty in Jerusalem, which is a long difficult process. Considering that the State Department has been anti-Israel forever and even recommended in 1947 to then President Harry Truman not to vote for a Jewish state in the United Nations, it wouldn't be easy.

And don't forget that Lame Duck Barack Hussein Obama has just re-thrown a wrench into the works by renewing the perennial presidential waiver.

In keeping with every other presidential administration over the last 20 years, a White House statement cited “national security interests” in waiving Congress’s 1995 decision to recognize Jerusalem as Israel’s capital and transfer its embassy there.
Every president since Bill Clinton has cited national security in presidential waivers signed every six months that have postponed the embassy’s relocation. (Times of Israel)

Been there, done that...

Shabbat Shalom u'Mevorach

May You Have a Peaceful and Blessed Shabbat

If Huma-Clinton Follow Obama as POTUS, Will Israel Finally See The Light?

Unlike many Israelis, I've never really considered the United States to be a true friend of the State of Israel. General policy comes from the State Department, and the nuances come from the sitting President. And don't forget that from the very beginning, the advice to then President Truman concerning how to vote on November 29, 1947, was to vote "no" concerning the approval of the establishment of a Jewish State.

After much debate and visit from an old friend, Truman bucked that advice and had his delegate vote "yes."

And while Arab forces, backed by Great Britain and others fought the newly formed IDF, Truman sat on his hands and watched, if he paid attention at all. Most countries, even those that voted "yes," expected the nascent Jewish State to be quickly defeated. That was the popular wisdom of the time. Remember that Great Britain did everything in its power to sabotage the establishment of a viable Jewish State. That included severely restricting immigration to preserve an Arab majority, arming the Arabs and dividing up the area mandated by the League of Nations to be Jewish state, twice, once by inventing Jordan, and the second by promoting the division of the remaining territory into Jewish and Arab states.

I consider the United States to be an extremely dangerous enemy of the State of Israel, because it claims to be a friend and ally while undermining our security and economic viability constantly. This is a classic example of the abuser-victim relationship, where the abuser proclaims love while abusing/beating the victim and then giving "gifts." Unfortunately, the Israeli persona/psyche is so damaged after thousands of years of antisemitism, that it is desperate for any form of attention and "kind" words, even when accompanied by backstabbing.

U.S. Presidents from the Democrats are most skilled at playing these games. One big reason is because American Jews have an illogical* affinity to the Democratic Party. And although it's no secret that Hillary Clinton's top aide and advisor is the pro-Arab Muslim Huma Abedin, a humongous percentage of her financial support is coming from Jews.

HYUNGWON KANG/REUTERS

Huma Abedin with Hillary Clinton.

Do You Think Huma Abedin Is An Anti-Semitic Person?

Yes	97%
No	3%

Read more: http://dailycaller.com/2016/10/05/exclusive-huma-abedin-email-attacked-jewish-group/#ixzz4MNMGPDwh

It would be worse than naive to imagine a Hillary Clinton White House without Huma Abedin in a top official role. I have no doubt that American Jewry will continue to lie to itself about Hillary being a friend, but I should hope that the State of Israel will finally wise up and see the truth. The United States of America is neither a friend nor ally of the State of Israel! This is certainly the case when the President is a Democrat, because the agenda of that party endangers the State of Israel. As awful as some of the Republican presidents have been vis-à-vis their Israeli policies, this is bupkes in comparison to the potential dangers of a Hillary Clinton presidency.

Yes, that means I consider Donald Trump to be much better for Israel and American Jews than Hillary. 

And I also think that having another US President, Hillary Gd forbid, who doesn't see the dangers of Islam for the world to be a danger for the United States and the rest of the world.

Remember that paranoids do have real enemies!

*I would really have wished to write "inexplicable," but we all know that for a very illogical reason, American Jewry has continuously been grateful for FDR's help in defeating the Nazis, as if he did it to stop the Holocaust, when the truth is that saving Jews was not part of his plan at all. He did nothing to stop/protest the antisemitism that mushroomed into systematic murder, nor did he do anything to stop the killing, and he kept out Jewish refugees and survivors as much as he could.

REALITY: THEY Do Want Israel Destroyed!

The State of Israel does have a lot of very dangerous enemies.

Who's the "THEY?"

Let's start with the so-called "pro-Israel" J Street.

J-Street Speaker Calls for Destruction of Israel – to Applause (VIDEO)

Click, watch and listen.

The EU-European Union is more comfortable with Hamas than with a secure Jewish State.

At a time when the European Union considers a proposal to remove Hamas from the list of “designated terrorist organizations”

How could anyone consider Hamas non-terrorist?

United States President Barack Hussein Obama and his State Department.

Managing Obama’s war against Israel

A simple check in the History Books will show that in the days leading up to the historic United Nations vote, November 29, 1947, favoring the establishment of a Jewish State, the official State Department recommendation was to vote "no." Over the years, the American policy was at best "hands off," and only later, after the 1967 Six Days War did the American Government accept that Israel truly existed and wasn't going to be easily defeated by its Arab enemies.  The Nixon-Kissinger plan during the 1973 Yom Kippur War was to control Israel after their planned stalemate between Egypt (the aggressor) and Israel which had been shocked by the attack. Israel's defeat of Egypt wasn't what they had been expecting.

Obama is just a worse actor, having an awful time hiding his true feelings about the State of Israel, than his predecessors.

Unfortunately, Prime Minister Netanyahu is making an awful mistake, yet again, in trying to placate the Americans. That's why I won't vote Likud. This doesn't surprise me at all.

Don't brush this off as paranoia, please.

Remember that even paranoids have enemies.

The United Nations, United Against Israel

Israelis like to celebrate November 29 as a pre-Independence Day holiday, because that was the day when the newly established United Nations voted to approve a Jewish State.  I don't consider that act to be all that worthy of our celebration for a couple of reasons. 

• One is that even though a majority of the members of the time did vote to approve a Jewish State, none of them was willing to do anything at all to ensure that the Jewish State would actually exist or survive the onslaught of Arab armies and terrorists which tried to destroy it.

• The second reason is that we did and do not need the approval of international bodies for our legitimacy, our existence. We owe our survival and existence to G-d and only G-d.  Our victories go against all logic and rules of warfare.

These two points must be remembered.

Very soon after the establishment of the State of Israel, the United Nations quickly established an organization to fully support those Arabs who claimed to be refugees, displaced by the State of Israel, UNRWA.  Unlike all other refugee support groups, this one has made it its aim to perpetuate the refugee status and privileges of the people housed in their camps.  All other refugee support groups aim to get the refugees settled in new productive lives in new homes and locations.  So it's very, very, very clear that the United Nations, contrary to that November 29th vote is really out to sabotage the State of Israel.

There's an interesting article in the Jerusalem Post (hat tip: David Bedein's Israel Behind the News) that tells us which countries have been supporting UNRWA recently.

The United Nations Relief and Work Agency is the only UN refugee agency dedicated to a single group of people. It is the only agency that designates individuals as original refugees if they lived in the area for a minimum of two years, that acknowledges the descendants of original refugees as refugees as well, and the only one that actively encourages its clients to act on their “right of return.”

Since WWII, 50 million people have been displaced by armed conflict.

The Palestinian people are the only ones in history to receive this special treatment.

Palestinian kids sit at UNRWA school Photo: REUTERS/Ibraheem Abu Mustafa

No doubt this is based on an obvious anti-Israel bias. They are counting on Israel to be destroyed, G-d forbid.  I honestly don't understand why Israel continues membership in the United Nations, an international organization that is doing all it can to undermine and destroy the State of Israel.