Thursday, July 12, 2018


“You keep using that word… I do not think it means what you think it means.”

I keep hearing and reading statements from Jews, usually from America, prefaced by “my Jewish values.” Usually what follows is some sort of accusation against Israel that has little to do with facts – or an understanding of Jewish values.

The basics are really simple, if you take the time to actually look at them:

1)   The Ten Commandments, not “Tikkun Olam”

The Ten Commandments are the fundamental guidelines of Jewish values, not the concept of Tikkun Olam. These are predicated on the Shema, the monotheistic declaration of faith in the One God: “Hear oh Israel, the Lord our God is one God.” Deuteronomy 6:4–9



The Ten Commandments are the guidelines that spell out what it means to be decent and provide the fundamental guidelines of moral society which have been accepted by to most of the nations on earth, including ones that do not adhere to Judeo-Christian faith. Societies that have not accepted these rules of behavior, (for example, those that permit murder for the sake of “honor”) are deemed immoral societies. 

Tikkun Olam seems to be a very popular term with American Jewry. Interestingly, it has no basis in the Torah.  

So where does Tikkun Olam come from?

The concept of Tikkun Olam can be found in in the prayer “Aleinu leshabei'ach” and the Kabbalistic understanding that the world is not whole because the male and female aspects of God are separated rather than united. At the time of redemption these aspects will unite and the world will be repaired. These references are so esoteric that many Israeli Jews have no familiarity with this concept at all.

Tikkun Olam does NOT mean social justice.

The literal translation of Tikkun Olam is “repairing the world.” It is not difficult to comprehend that the world is broken but who has the power to fix it? Why doesn’t God fix the world?

If one takes the time to actually consider this question, it is shockingly arrogant to conclude that a certain group of individuals have the ability to repair the world. Can any single group decide what is the “right” way for everyone to do things and by convincing (forcing?) others to comply, fix all that is wrong in the world?!

Judaism is not a missionary based religion and does not push faith or lifestyle on others. Jews never took part in Crusades or sent missionaries around the world to convince the “heathen” to adopt our religion and our ways of life. In fact, Judaism does the exact opposite, making it extremely difficult to become Jewish – so why would anyone think it is “Jewish” to “crusade” for social justice?

Judaism provides a very clear guidebook of how to live a good life and be a decent human being. The commandments of Judaism are for Jews and are not directed at non-Jews. By extension, redemption (at which time the world will be “repaired”) has nothing to do with what non-Jews do or don’t do but rather the behavior of Jews. Our influence on this process has to do with fixing ourselves, not changing others, fulfilling our own obligations, not demanding others do what we think is right.

History has shown that Jews, living a Jewish life (in contrast to Jewish-by-birth radical atheists) have a positive influence on the societies in which we live but this is not a result of being a “social justice warrior” but rather social justice, the creation of a good and moral society, is a by-product of adhering to the principles of Judaism.

To put it simply – be Maimonides (the Rambam) not Karl Marx. 

2)   “Do not kill” vs “Do not murder”

Recent condemnations of Israeli policy in regard to Gaza draw on “Jewish values” to declare that killing is wrong and accuse the IDF of massacring Gazans. On face value, the idea that the Jewish State implements policy that goes against Jewish values seems like a potent argument - unless you actually know what Jewish values are and have familiarized yourself with a factual accounting of events in Israel.

So, first things first –

Does Judaism say that killing is wrong?

No! The Ten Commandments say that murder is forbidden, not killing.




If killing was forbidden we would all be vegetarians. Instead of extensive chapters on the laws of warfare and the wars of Israel, the Torah would simply say that Jews must be pacifists.
But it doesn’t.

Judaism instructs that life is sacred thus we must protect life – first and foremost OUR own lives. When attacked by someone attempting to murder you it is necessary to make sure that the murderer does not succeed. If the murderer dies in the process this is regrettable but justifiable. Had they not been attempting to murder, they would not have been hurt.   

Killing in self-defense is not murder.

So how does this translate to Israeli policy and IDF actions?

On May 14th some 40,000 Gazans rioted on Israel’s border with Gaza. They had explosives, knives and firebombs. Their leaders had openly declared that the goal was to storm the border, break through and eat the hearts of Jews. Many of the rioters used little children and even babies as human shields to hide behind as they a
ttempted to breach the border.
IDF snipers killed 62 of the rioters.
Israel was promptly accused of massacring “peaceful protestors” and using “disproportional force.”
A massacre is the deliberate, indiscriminate and brutal slaughter of a large number of people.
Two days later Hamas, an internationally recognized terrorist organization, announced proudly that 50 out of the 62 dead were Hamas professionals, trained operatives who had left their uniforms at home to blend in with the civilian Gazan population while attempting to attack Israel. Islamic Jihad took responsibility for most of the remaining dead. These were not innocent or peaceful protestors. They were professional terrorists.







Had the IDF decided to drop bombs on the rioters that would have constituted a massacre. All of the 40,000 could have easily been killed. That would have stopped the subsequent 100 days of violent riots, missiles and arson attacks on Israeli communities. It would have been much easier for the IDF, faster and more effective. Israelis who lost their livelihood to arson terror would not be in the position they are today.

But we don’t do that.

The IDF, knowing that terrorists were hiding within the civilian population managed, astonishingly, to eliminate the terrorists and not the innocents they were using as human shields. This is an unprecedented level of pinpoint accuracy, discriminant, minimal violence made necessary after all other options were exhausted.    

The accusation that the IDF “massacred” Gazans, using disproportional force, is utterly baseless and in fact contrary to Jewish values which demand that the State must defend the lives of her citizens. It would be immoral to do otherwise.

3)   Arguing and questioning are the birthright of the Jewish people

Unlike religions that came before Judaism and those that came after, Jewish tradition demands questioning, not blind obedience. One can and in some cases, should, argue even with God. The best example of this is probably the story of Sodom and Gomorrah where God tells Abraham that the cities will be destroyed and Abraham critiques God for this decision, bargaining for the lives of the people living there. 

It is imperative to ask “Why?” This is the mindset that has differentiated the Jewish mind from all others, made Jewish scholars extraordinary and is the driving factor in the success of the Start-Up Nation. The constant need to question, arguing sometimes for the pure joy of the mental gymnastics of debating makes Jews annoying but it also makes us exceptional.


In Judaism there is always a reason why. The problem is that those who do not know the answers and do not bother to search for them often jump to incorrect and even baseless conclusions. My Jewish values direct me to not accept bombastic statements but to question everything, think for myself and if I don’t know they answer, ask “why?” until I get an acceptable answer – particularly when it comes to big issues such as my Jewish identity and my right to live free in my ancestral homeland. 



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  • Thursday, July 12, 2018
  • Elder of Ziyon
On Tuesday evening, I checked out the protest by BDSers outside the Joyce Theater in New York where Israel's Batsheva Dance Company was to perform.



The BDSers had a small band and one person would start a responsive verse about some trendy intersectional issue interspersed with verses about "Israeli apartheid" that would be repeated by the 15 or so drones.

It was pretty boring.


I spoke to one lady handing out flyers with typical anti-Israel lies, and asked her if I can ask her a few questions. I asked if she was anti-Israel or pro-Palestine, and she said she wasn't anti-Israel at all. Then I asked her what about the slogan "from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free" and she answered that she wanted a single democratic state (obviously not Israel.) I then asked her if she was against a Jewish state, and she said she didn't want Israel to be like Iran where there is a state religion (which Israel doesn't have.) When I asked her about every Arab state save Lebanon that says they are Muslim states in their constitutions, she claimed I was wrong and then called over one of the others because she realized she was in way over her head. They told her not to talk to me.

The JDL was there doing a counter-demonstration. while I thought that people holding signs saying "Punish Gaza" do not do anything at all positive for Israel, Zionism or Jews, at least they countered the other hate.

Police barricades were up to make sure that theatre-goers wouldn't be harassed. I didn't stay until the box office opened.






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  • Thursday, July 12, 2018
  • Elder of Ziyon


From Progressive Zionists of the California Democratic Party:

 Progressive Zionists of the California Democratic Party is concerned about candidate for Assembly Member in District 63 Maria Estrada’s public support of notorious homophobe and antisemite Louis Farrakhan and her repeated and extreme antisemitism in the guise of “criticism of Israel".

Candidate Estrada made repeated antisemitic remarks about the Jewish state in a series of Facebook comments.

On May 10, 2017 she posted a cartoon replacing the Magen David on the Israeli flag with the swastika of the Nazis, but the next day she apologized for her post. However, on October 6, 2017 she claimed non-Jews could not be Zionists without being influenced by Jewish friends or loved ones. In this same exchange--shortly after a detailed posting of many of Farrakhan's hateful statements about Jews--she commented that she “enjoys listening to Farrakhan’s sermons”, as well as claiming Democrats turn a blind eye to Palestinians, and “justify it by bringing up the Holocaust. As if what happened 70 years ago justifies what is happening now.”

On May 14, 2018 “calling out” Eric Bauman, Chair of the California Democratic Party, she admonished him for not keeping “your party, your religion and your people in check.”




Comparing Zionism - the movement for Jewish liberation and self-determination - to ideologies that support oppression and genocide against Jews is grotesquely racist. ...
Additionally, it is antisemitic to claim Jews spend too much time talking about the Holocaust, or compare the situation in Palestine to what the Nazis did to Jews. This comparison holds no real comparable value and is intended only to hurt Jews, especially those who lost the majority of their families to Nazis. Nazis intended to ensure there were no Jews left anywhere on the planet. We can and should be in dialogue about how Israel handles Palestinian concerns, but it is a deliberate and malicious contrivance to attempt to somehow hold these two as equal.

Moreover, Estrada saying that she “enjoy[s] listening to Farrakhan’s sermons”, a known and noxious public figure, is a slap in the face to the LGBTQ community and women as well as Jews. Farrakhan’s sermons are littered with homophobia and misogyny. The SPLC and the ADL label him as a hate figure. A truly progressive leader would spurn him from their spaces to make it as safe and inclusive for all identities.
I have no idea why the organization didn't say anything about the statement "Anyone who believes they are one of 'God's chosen people' automatically feels superior and justified and all they do" [sic]. That is more antisemitic than anything else they quoted.






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Wednesday, July 11, 2018

From Ian:

UN Watch: One year later — the answer to "Where Are Your Jews?"
Mr. President, one year ago in this chamber I asked the Arab states a simple question: “Where are your Jews?”

My question was met with dead silence. Millions of people worldwide watched the video, witnessing for themselves the hypocrisy and double standards that characterizes much of what is said and done here.

Today I have come to provide the answer to my question. Algeria, Iraq, Syria, Egypt, Lebanon, Yemen, Libya—your Jews fled as refugees after suffering persecution and deadly pogroms like the Farhud of Baghdad in 1941.

Fortunately, countries like Israel, the U.S., Canada, France and others opened their doors, offering citizenship and equal rights. These Jewish refugees from Arab lands—whose suffering and losses the UN has never addressed—put their hardship behind them and built great lives for their families.

Now let us contrast this with the situation of those descended from Arab refugees who fled the area of British Mandatory Palestine during the invasion of nascent Israel by Arab armies. What is holding them back? The answer is simple.

Palestinians are the only population in the world not eligible for services by the UN refugee agency. Instead these descendants are governed by UNRWA, which holds generation after generation trapped in refugee camps, denied integration in the Arab countries they were born in and denied resettlement elsewhere.

Some of UNRWA’s donors are waking up to the problem. As the Swiss Foreign Minister recently has put it: “By supporting UNRWA, we are only keeping the conflict alive.”

I thank you, Mr. President.


Melanie Phillips: Brexit, PA textbooks, Labour party antisemitism
Please join me here as I discuss with Avi Abelow of Israel Unwired Britain’s increasingly tumultuous Brexit drama, the UK Foreign Office’s sudden qualms over funding Palestinian Authority textbook incitement (!), the Labour party’s ever-deepening mire over antisemitism, and more.


IsraellyCool: The Palestinian Space Agency is a Thing
In the wake of Israel’s kick-ass efforts to land on the moon by next year, the following website has come to my attention

Yes, seriously. It seems to have been around since 2011, and much like their museum and, come to think of it, space itself, it is full of nothing.

You can get your PSA swag there – just send your post address and order to their email address.

  • Wednesday, July 11, 2018
  • Elder of Ziyon


From Koz Times:

Palestinian activists have accused the Saudi TV channel “al Arabiya”, a Zionist propaganda. The reason for this was the transfer on “the Nakba” – the flight of the Arabs from Israel after the proclamation of the Jewish state.

The channel has decided to dedicate the 1948 two programmes. One told about them from the perspective of living in Palestine-Arabs, the second – from the point of view of the Jewish Yishuv. “Al Arabiya” reported that the issue must be approached without ideological blinders.

“Ignoring any professional standards, the staff of “al-Arabi” Express support unjust occupation in the film about the creation of the Zionist entity. This ignores all the historical facts”, – reads the statement of the Palestinian Center of Resistance to Normalization.

The Center called the transfer “a scandalous disaster journalism.” According to the statement, the purpose of this interpretation of history is the normalization of between the Zionists and the Arab world, the website of The New Arab.

According to other sites, the Israeli side of the documentary "represented Palestinians as criminals; the ones who attacked the Israelis to begin with. It has also described Hamas as a ‘Terrorist Movement’ for trying to defend the land, and defended ‘Haganah’ as a Jewish paramilitary organization."






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