Let us keep Ian in our prayers this Rosh Hashana. (I don't know details on why he has not been available for the past few days but something major clearly happened.)
America will pay the price for Obama’s Iran deal ‘victory’
The word “disconnect” is the appropriate way to describe the chasm between America’s government and its citizens. We all have our favorite examples, but none can match the events of last week.The “Candy” the Mullahs Gave to Obama
On the eve of the 14th anniversary of the worst attack ever against our nation, President Obama celebrated a nuclear pact with Iran, an Islamic theocracy whose leader calls the United States “Satan” and joins crowds in chanting “Death to America.”
A mere 21 percent of the American public supports the deal and a bipartisan majority of the Senate opposes it. Yet the filibuster rule blocked the Senate from defeating it, allowing Obama to hail the “historic step forward.”
His “victory” is a disconnect that will live in infamy.
What if the US Congress votes on a deal that does not really exist because the Iranian side has no intention of even acknowledging it as a legally binding contract?Unless he is a prisoner of his fantasies, Obama is surely aware that the way Tehran regards the deal is diametrically different from his.Top Craziest Tweets From Khamenei This Summer
In Tehran, the ruling elite see the deal as a piece of candy to keep Obama happy with himself, without committing Iran to any definite course of action. To them, the so-called Joint Comprehensive Plan for Action (JCPOA), which Obama is peddling as “the chance of a lifetime”, is nothing but a wish list to be used a la carte. They have not even bothered with providing an official Persian translation of the text.
The Supreme Guide Ali Khamenei sees the JCPOA as nothing but a proposal to be examined, improved, amended or even rejected by “competent authorities.”
In other words, he sees the whole thing as the first step, not the culmination of 13 years of negotiations.
President Hassan Rouhani goes further.
He claims that the JCPOA is nothing but a “political document”, not a legal one. He has opposed its approval by the Islamic Majlis, Iran’s ersatz parliament, under articles 77 and 125 of the Constitution. His reason is that as long as JCPOA has no legal status in Iran, the Islamic government could apply or not apply its provisions a la carte. However, if ratified by the Majlis in the form of an Act of Parliament, it would become Iranian law, its implementation obligatory.
It's been a wild summer with @Khamenei_ir trying to score a deal with America, but some of his tweets make us wonder why the world isn’t freaking out over this bad deal.
Do liberals even know what's in the Iran deal? (video)
Arabs Attack Jewish Boy in Old City of Jerusalem
A young Jewish boy wearing Tallit and Tefillin was attacked by Arabs on HaShalshelet street in the Old City of Jerusalem.
The attack was caught on video.
As he’s running from the mob, Arabs on the side of the street kick him, trip him, hit him, and throw things at him.
What a way to end 5775.
Jordan: We Do Not Want Palestinians
"Improve the living conditions of the Palestinian refugees. Allow them to settle down. Give them citizenship so that they can live as human beings." — Dr. Ahmad Abu Matar, an Oslo-based Palestinian academic, blasting Arab the world for its continued mistreatment of Palestinians.
The Arabs do not care about the Palestinians and want them to remain Israel's problem. Countries such as Lebanon and Syria would rather see Palestinians living as "animals in the jungle" than grant them basic rights such as employment, education and citizenship.
It is no surprise that refugees fleeing Syria have no ambitions to settle in any Arab country. They know that their fate in the Arab world will be no better than that of Palestinians living in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon and other Arab countries.
A Rosh Hashanah Miracle on Bograshov St
It sounds like a story lifted from a Hassidic tale: With Rosh Hashanah fast approaching, a new rabbi was in need of a synagogue. After running around town trying to secure a location for the holidays, he had all but given up, until he met a 92-year-old gabbai (warden) who just happened to have the keys to an abandoned synagogue across the street.
Rosh Hashana in Tunis
Legally, the rights of Jews (along with other religious minorities) are protected here. In 2013, the Constituent National Assembly passed a new law establishing the “liberty of conscience and belief.” Despite the fact that Tunisia’s security apparatus is largely dysfunctional and fragmented, Jewish places of worship, including the Grande Synagogue de Tunis, are physically guarded by the state.
“Actually, we feel it’s harder for the Jews in the US and Europe than in Tunisia,” Cohen says. He might not be exaggerating.
According to the most recent FBI statistics, 62.4% of religiously motivated hate crimes committed in the US target Jews. In France, the watchdog group Service de Protection de la Communauté Juive (SPCJ) reported an 84% increase in the number of anti-Semitic incidents in the first quarter of 2015. “I would never send my daughter to university in France,” Cohen says with a shake of his head. “I’m too scared.”
Still, the Jewish community in Tunisia does face discrimination. Several religious sites and cemeteries were recently desecrated. When Cohen leaves the house, like many other observant male Jews, he wears a baseball cap to cover his kippah. But most Muslim Tunisians have no problems with their Jewish countrymen, he notes. They have, after all, co-existed for millennia.
As the Jewish year comes to a close, and a new one rolls in, Cohen will lead his community in ancient prayers for peace and health. Speeches will be made in a mix of Arabic and French, a ram’s horn will be blown, and apples will be dipped in honey. There is hope, as always, that this new year will be sweeter than the last.
Jews To Celebrate Rosh Hashasha Or Something (The Onion)
Jews the world over are preparing to celebrate Rosh Hashanukah or something this weekend, the traditional Jewish holiday marking some sort of rebirth and new beginning, or maybe the Jews' liberation from some foreign ruler 55,000 years ago. "Rash Kishansha is a very holy time for the Jewish people," said Paul Castellano, a guy from Houston whose gastroenterologist is Jewish. "I think Dr. Futterman said it's the holiday where they light that chandelier and blow that horn." Lasting 12 days, Ran Hosea is followed by Yor Kiplach, the Festival of Sand, during which no buttered bread may be eaten in remembrance of the flooding of the ancient Temple of Hosea.
Four Rosh Hashana greetings:
Hassan Rouhani's Rosh Hashanah tweet:
May our shared Abrahamic roots deepen respect & bring peace & mutual understanding. L'Shanah Tovah. #RoshHashanah pic.twitter.com/UheJPrjuVx
— Hassan Rouhani (@HassanRouhani) September 13, 2015
Barack Obama's Rosh Hashanah message:
David Cameron's Rosh Hashanah message:
Bibi's Rosh Hashanah message: