Tuesday, January 14, 2014
Douglas Murray: What the EU Does with Your Money
There are many ways in which the EU displays a casual disregard for its distribution of taxpayers' money. But one of the most outrageous ways by far – with some very stiff competition – is the way in which the EU wastes taxpayers' money by giving huge lumps of it in aid to the Palestinian Authority [PA]. The laxity with which this is done and the uses to which much of that money is put highlights a problem which ought to make even the EU blush – and any decent taxpayer rebel.The Ideology and Rhetoric Behind the ASA Boycott
Ignorance can be no excuse. In recent years a number of organizations and individuals have persistently highlighted the manner in which EU funding has been used to facilitate hate-materials and hate-teaching in Palestinian schools. Foremost among the organizations that have highlighted this has been Palestinian Media Watch [PMW], which has systematically and carefully collected and translated for wider English-speaking consumption the sort of language that is used routinely in the education sectors in Palestinian society. And as in the schools, so in the media. For EU money is also used to fund various Palestinian media outfits. And the diet of hatred they spew out is the stuff of legend. For instance, there is the aid money that goes to television stations such as that which PMW recently showed to be broadcasting material describing Jews as "rats" and "crows."
For many radicals in academia, Israel has become the scapegoat of convenience on which they heap all the alleged sins of West: imperialism, colonialism, sexism, racism, apartheid and whatever else an offended group can dredge up. For some that is not enough. Several of the ASA boycott advocates deny that Israel is a democracy and even apply the term "totalitarian" to Israel, implicitly lumping it with other totalitarian states, like Nazi Germany. As Cary Nelson, concludes, "The fundamental goal of the boycott is not the peaceful coexistence of two states, one Jewish and one Palestinian, but rather the elimination of Israel." The academic boycott attempts to provide intellectual cover.US lawmakers rail against academic boycott of Israel
Over four dozen members of Congress have signed a bipartisan letter blasting a decision earlier this month by the American Studies Association to participate in an academic boycott of Israel.
In the letter, circulated by Reps. Peter Roskam (R-IL), Ted Deutch (D-FL), Doug Collins (R-GA) and Bradley Schneider (D-IL), the representatives stated that “while ASA has every right to express its views on policies pursued by any nation or government, we believe that the decision to blacklist Israeli academic institutions for Israeli government policies with which ASA disagrees demonstrates a blatant disregard for academic freedom.”
Senior Egyptian diplomat quietly attends Sharon memorial ceremony
The Egyptian embassy’s No. 2 diplomat was among the dozens of dignitaries who attended the event, an Israeli Foreign Ministry official told The Times of Israel. The Knesset ceremony featured eulogies by President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who extolled Sharon as one of Israel’s greatest military leaders.A Pavlovian Obsession: Human Rights Watch Targets Ariel Sharon
No name for the official was available, and a spokesperson at the Egyptian Embassy in Tel Aviv declined to comment. Egyptian diplomats in Israel generally keep a low profile due to strained formal relations between the countries. Behind-the-scenes, by contrast, security coordination between the two countries is currently fairly close.
Like vultures circling a carcass, the leaders of New York-based Human Rights Watch (HRW) prepared yet another attack against Ariel Sharon. Within hours of his death on Jan.11, HRW proved that their Pavlovian obsession has not waned, publishing a press release that again highlighted this organization’s double standards and irresponsible disregard of both facts and international law. Sharon, as HRW’s stand-in for all issues related to Israel, was accused of every conceivable “war crime” and violation, while the history of mass terror and other forms of Arab and Palestinian brutality was erased. Once again, the radical ideologues and immoral Israel-bashers who control HRW demonstrated that in their eyes, Israelis are sub-human and therefore have no human rights.European press coverage of Sharon mixed following ex-premier's death
However, she cited an article in the tabloid Expressen ,which quotes Per Jönsson, who compares Sharon to Hitler and Stalin. Sharon’s “military methods against Palestinians and Jordanians can almost be likened to those of Hitler and Stalin," Jönsson is quoted as saying in the piece. "Ben-Gurion gave him carte blanche to do whatever he wanted."PMW: PA officials and Israeli Arab MP respond to Sharon's death
Per Jönsson works as a Middle East expert at the Swedish Institute of International Affairs.
Abramowicz said the comparison between Sharon and Hitler "is the worst I have heard of or read these last couple days."
The Israeli Arab party Hadash announced that "war criminal and former Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon is dead" on its official Facebook page. Elsewhere on its Facebook page the party referred to Sharon as "murderer." The party also posted a cartoon of Sharon walking down to Hell, dragging iron balls behind him that are chained to his feet and labeled "Deir Yassin," "Qibya," "Sabra," and "Shatila." [Hadash's official Arabic Facebook page, posted Jan. 11, 2014]Fox Error: Sharon Entered Al Aqsa Mosque
In a blatant factual error which Fox News must correct, Conor Powell erroneously reported Jan. 11 that Ariel Sharon entered the Al Aqsa Mosque in September 2000:A nasty little lie from the Guardian about Ariel Sharon and Sabra/Shatila massacre
"His actions helped spark the second Palestinian uprising in 2000 when he pushed past security and entered the Al Aqsa Mosque, one of Islam's most sacred places."
"In 1982, serving as defence minister, he allowed Christian Phalangists into the Palestinian camps of Sabra and Shatila, where they massacred more than 700 men, women and children. An Israeli government inquiry concluded that Mr Sharon bore personal responsibility for the incident," the paper, which is the house journal of the BBC said.Daniel Seidmann distorts the reality of Jerusalem’s Palestinians at ‘Comment is Free’
The only way to make sense of this garbage is to conclude that Sharon must have ordered the Phalangists to do it -- which obviously he didn't -- or that he was clairvoyant -- which obviously he wasn't; and knew in advance exactly what was going to happen.
The lie is doubled up with reference to the Israeli government report which simply says he was responsible for not doing enough to stop the incident, not that he actually bore responsibility for what took place. That's why he and several others were held to have had a measure of indirect responsibility, but not to have been responsible for the incident itself.
Finally, in the context of Seidmann’s advocacy on behalf of again dividing the city, it’s worth remembering that Jordan ethnically cleansed the Jewish residents when it conquered the eastern half of the city in 1949 and, similarly, it seems certain that all Jewish residents of a future Palestinian controlled east Jerusalem would similarly be expelled.Dutch soccer team explains why it left Israeli behind
In other words, those advocating for a divided Jerusalem not only ignore the wishes of Palestinians who live there, but are tacitly supporting a future in which co-existence between Jew and Arab in the city would be replaced by walls and ethnic cleansing.
Several Dutch politicians criticized Vitesse’s decision to leave without Dan Mori, as did the Hague-based Center for Information and Documentation on Israel.BBC pussyfooting around antisemitism again
According to Vitesse statements on Jan. 5, Abu Dhabi made it clear that Mori would not be allowed to enter the Saudi emirate because he is Israeli.
A January 10th obituary for Amiri Baraka which appeared in the Entertainment & Arts section of the BBC News website includes the following paragraph:Burston Bombs Blumenthal
“In 2002, as poet laureate of New Jersey, Baraka drew accusations of anti-Semitism over his poem Somebody Blew Up America, which referenced the 11 September 2001 attacks.”
Like this writer, many readers of that article will probably remain confused as to why a poem about the 9/11 attacks should prompt “accusations” of anti-Semitism and why the BBC does not offer any further explanation to that cryptic statement.
With a slap broad enough to whack leftist – but not leftist enough – Israelis, Blumenthal makes horrific Palestinian attacks on rush hour buses and Holocaust survivors at a Passover Seder, seem like symbolic anarchist graffiti, just desserts for a fat cat bourgeoisie. Blumenthal neatly mops up the blood running in Israeli downtowns in the first years of the last decade:Former Chief Rabbi Sacks Tells CNN’s Amanpour Resurgent Anti-Semitism Main Worry (VIDEO)
Rabbi Jonathan Sacks told CNN anchorwoman Christiane Amanpour that resurgent anti-Semitism is his prevailing worry for world Jewry.IDF Delegation to Haiti: Four Years Later, Four Amazing Stories
In a transcript of the interview uploaded to the internet at the weekend, the former Commonwealth Chief Rabbi and now Professor of Judaic Thought at New York University and Yeshiva University, said, “Christiane, I am very worried about the return of anti-Semitism to Europe.”
In 2010, Israel joined the global effort in assisting Haiti’s earthquake victims, treating more than 1,110 patients, completing 319 successful surgeries and delivering 16 births. The humanitarian delegation consisted of 220 people and included a field hospital and a rescue unit.No cords, no fuss – charging your gadgets without wires
Here are four of the most amazing stories.
One does not usually associate high-tech with the alleviation of anxiety, but PowerMat Technologies co-founder Ran Poliakine claims that his venture does just that.Israeli scientists reveal how persistent bacteria are able to avoid antibiotics
“Imagine a world in which you didn’t have to worry about how and where to charge your mobile phones, laptops and tablets every time you left home,” says the 46-year-old innovator with a degree in industrial design from Jerusalem’s Bezalel Academy of Art and Design.
In a groundbreaking study, Hebrew University of Jerusalem scientists focused their microscopes on “persistent bacteria” which are not resistant to antibiotics and continue to exist in a dormant or inactive state while exposed to antibacterial treatment. These bacteria later “awaken” when that treatment is over, resuming their detrimental tasks, presenting a dilemma as to how to deal with them.SodaStream signs Scarlett Johansson as first-ever brand ambassador
Until now, it had been known that there is a connection between these kinds of bacteria and the naturally occurring toxin HipA in the bacteria, but scientists did not know the cellular target of this toxin and how its activity triggers dormancy of the bacteria.
Golden Globe nominee Scarlett Johansson is now the official global ambassador for SodaStream International, the Israeli-made manufacturer and distributor of home beverage carbonation systems. Johansson’s first commercial for SodaStream will premiere at the Super Bowl on February 2, 2014.Behind The Scenes Of Our New SuperBowl Commercial With Scarlett Johansson
Daniel Birnbaum, CEO of SodaStream, announced in a press release that Johansson was the perfect brand ambassador because she “is a long-time user and genuine fan of our products, a role model for healthy body image and a champion for environmental responsibility.”
Israel Daily Picture: Remarkable Pictures of Extinct Jewish Communities, Part 3
We present Part 3 of a series of vintage pictures on the Jews of the Middle East.
Like the communities in previous features -- Baghdad, Mosul, and Constantinople Istanbul) -- the Jews of Cairo, Alexandria, and Damascus are on the verge of extinction.
Some of the pictures presented here show both the poverty and the wealth of the various Jewish communities.
