Out of the Frying Pan and into the Fire: Israeli Emigration to Germany

ד׳ לחודש השמיני תשע״ה

On one hand, the left-wing, [Am] Ha'Aretz, Israeli news, source did not do a bad job addressing the issue of Israeli emigration. On the other hand, it could have gone after the "Berlin Aliyah" initiative on Facebook, and ripped it apart, while still remaining objective.

Am Ha'Aretz (Riff-Raff)

However, we cannot expect these journalists to be too openly critical of their allies in the battle against the Torah, including the elimination of the last remaining fibers of Jewish nature associated with the State of Israel, and in the battle for assimilation of the Jewish People into the global community of nations.

My Esser Agaroth (2¢) commentary is interspersed below, followed by my conclusion.

Ha'Aretz: Israeli emigration slowing down, despite fears of ‘Berlin aliyah’
Despite 'Milky scare,' only a few thousand Israelis living in Berlin.

Lior Dattel, October 14, 2014

Despite concerns over a wave of emigration from Israel, which was brought on by recent public debate over a Facebook page urging young Israelis to move to Berlin, figures show that the rate of emigration has slowed dramatically, and that in 2012 the rate was the lowest since the state was established.

Emigration is also low in comparison to member countries in the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

According to the World Bank, most Israelis emigrate to the United States or Canada. Germany, while a popular choice, is a destination that attracts far fewer Israelis than does North America...

There is little comfort in the fact that delusions of a glitzy life in Los Angeles or a financial paradise in New York is more attractive to Israelis, than a return to the origin of gas chambers and cremation ovens.

...In 2012, a year after the wave of social protest broke out, the overall number of Israeli emigrants (defined as people who leave the country and remain abroad for more than a year) declined to approximately 15,900. According to border control figures from April 2014, approximately one quarter of the people who emigrated in 2012 returned or informed the authorities of an intended return date.

Figures also show that most emigrants are not Israeli-born; the majority came to live in Israel from the former Soviet Union in the 1990s. Only 5,700 Israeli emigrants who left in 2012 are Jews born in Israel.

Perhaps their ties to Eretz Yisra'el (Land of Israel) were tenuous in the first place. Perhaps, like many Jews from American I know, they confused the flaws in how the State functions with the importance of residing in Eretz Yisra'el. Plus, I wonder just how many of these immigrants from the former Soviet Union were actually Jewish. Those who aren't, good riddance. those who are, then it is a shame, and a reflection of both the poor education received while here, as well as the strength of the galuth influence with the former Soviet Union.

According to the Central Bureau of Statistics: “The current decline in the balance of emigration constitutes, among other things, a response to the economic slowdown in various countries that in the past were desirable destinations for emigrants.”

Della Pergola concurs. The economic situation in Israel has a major effect, he says – the higher the employment rate, the lower the emigration rate. “The next influential figure is the income level. Despite the gap in incomes in Israel, all in all, income has gone up,” he says. 

We Jews still do not get it. Many of us still think that it is all about the money. Well, it seems to me that we will soon have to learn the hard way (but hopefully not too hard), that it is not all about the money, but that money may be used as the tool to provide us with this crucial life lesson. The idea of a bag of rice being worth more than any artificial currency, or soap being a luxury item, may seem very foreign and farfecthed. Let us hope that are conditions never get to this point. In the meantime, I would suggest that we take a hard look at what is really important: A roof over our heads, a reasonably priced, Jewish education, and the opportunity to build a life, and raise our families in Eretz Yisra'el.

Nevertheless, although emigration figures are down, the profile of the émigré is still a source of concern: It is estimated that most Israelis who move abroad are young university graduates, whose skills make it possible for them to make a good living there. However, such a brain drain exists in many places around the globe, including Europe.

I would be very interested to learn if there is a pattern related to fields of study. Who has been emigrating? Those who studies the humanities and social sciences, in university or those who studied hard sciences. Israeli universities have become bastions of anti-Torah indoctrination. Do not be fooled by the graduates and professors wearing kippoth and other forms of religious expression.

In other words, a battalion of ultra-leftist, social workers, the State's front line soldiers in the culture war, would surely NOT be missed. I am not so sure that we will have to worry about any "brain drain." Do our brains really need anymore individuals cramming them with anti-Torah, "globalist" values and sensibilities, not to mention Hebrew University's "biblical criticism?" I think not.

Regarding beneficial brain content, so far, Israel has had enough sense to focus on high tech, keeping the hope of employment alive for those who studied physical sciences during their university tenure.

Did you notice how absolutely no mention was made regarding whether any Torah scholars were included in any of the emigration statistics? What would the Am Ha'Aretz news service care? For that matter, what would the State of Israel care?

The figures even count as emigrants Israelis who have relocated abroad for a specific period for work or study, with no intention of emigrating.

(Tip: JewsNews)

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
I was pleasantly surprised that the far-left, anti-Torah, [Am] Ha'Aretz news site bothered to research and point out the inaccuracies of the reported statistics.

The Facebook page עולים לברלין "Immigrating to Berlin," encouraging emigration from Israel to Germany, specifically to Berlin, Only the [Am] Ha'Aretz Newspaper could possibly have the audacity to apply the term aliyah, "going up spiritually," to emigration from Israel to Germany.

עולים לברלין. כל העצות, ההסברים, הבירוקרטיה והטפסים שיעזרו לכם להחלץ מיוקר המחיה הבלתי אפשרי והאלים בישראל. olimleberlin@gmail.com

Immigrating to Berlin. All of the advice, explanations, bureaucracy, and forms which will help you to get out of the impossible cost of living and the"violence" in Israel. olimleberlin@gmail.com

The founders of this Facebook initiative are not entirely to blame.

The key factor behind possible emigration from Israel is the employment rate, according to the professor, who adds "the next influential figure is the income level. Despite the gap in incomes in Israel, all in all, income has gone up." 

Many have argued that the housing crisis in Israel that is cited in the recent Berlin protest as a reason to leave could be solved if Israel would only develop in Judea and Samaria, an area currently suffering from a silent Jewish construction freeze by the government despite being 90% unpopulated, and despite the full legality of Israel's presence in the region under international law. (Arutz 7)

I will hazard a guess that those leaving Israel for their convoluted "promised land" in Germany could not care less about developing Judea and Samaria. However, this does put some of the onus on the Israeli government.

Jews should never want to leave Eretz Yisra'el, and need not be concerned with "international law," when it comes to what The Almighty has already decided. However, the government could kill a few birds with one stone, if it would only annex Judea and Samaria, and develop its housing and economic potentials.

Even Jews supposedly flocking to Berlin would have second thoughts, and would be given an additional opportunity not only to remain in Eretz Yisra'el, but to be inspired by Israel's example, and witness first-hand what can come out of following what The Almighty wants for us, over what we believe we want for ourselves.

I can guarantee you that The Almighty does not want us to return to previous paths of self-destruction, which were possible, at least in part, by our desire to assimilate within the lands of our exile.

Dachau Concentration Camp Ovens

For those of you are offended by the allusion to the ovens of the Holocaust concentration camps, too bad.

When I say "out of the frying pan, and into the fire," I mean it literally.

Eric Yoffie and the Reform Movement: Delusional or Evil?

ג׳ לחודש השמיני תשע״ה

JPost.com: US Jews not threatened by anti-Semitism, former Reform chief says
"Anti-Semitism is not a threat to the security and well-being of the Jews of America," Rabbi Eric Yoffie wrote in Time.

JPost.com Staff, Maya Shwayder, and Sam Sokol, May 31, 2014

American Jews can feel reassured that they are safe from any physical threats motivated by anti-Semitism, said Rabbi Eric Yoffie, the former head of the US Reform movement.

World Jewry is trying to come to grips with last week’s shooting attack at the Brussels Jewish Museum, the resurgence of the European far Right and anti-Jewish rhetoric in the Muslim world.

Writing an opinion piece for Time magazine, Yoffie declared that “anti-Semitism is not a threat to the security and well-being of the Jews of America.”

He said that while there are worrying trends of escalating anti-Semitism in Europe and the Muslim world, American Jews can take solace in the fact that the United States remains safe and discrimination-free.

The rabbi was writing in response to the results of a recent survey released by the Anti-Defamation League, which found that negative attitudes toward Jews are “persistent and pervasive around the world.”

After surveying over 50,000 people in 102 countries in what it termed the “most comprehensive assessment ever of anti-Semitic attitudes globally,” the ADL came to a number of surprising conclusions.

The First International Resources poll determined that 26 percent of respondents were “deeply infected” with anti-Semitic attitudes, while only a little more than half of those polled have heard of the Holocaust. Twothirds of those asked stated that they have either not heard of the Nazi genocide or do not believe that accepted historical accounts are correct.

Those who responded positively to six or more questions out of a set of 11 questions based on common Jewish stereotypes were deemed anti-Semitic by the New York-based Jewish advocacy group. The ADL’s National Director Abraham Foxman said that they purposely set the bar high.

“We didn’t want to hype. We wanted to understate, rather than overstate, and to be careful that we’re only labeling those people who are really bad,” he said.

Yoffie countered that while he doesn’t doubt that millions of Americans do harbor anti-Semitic sentiments, it is far from being translated into anti-Jewish behavior.

“And by behavioral standards, it is difficult to see anti-Semitism as a factor of any consequence in American life,” Yoffie wrote. “Jews in America are able to live in neighborhoods where they want to live, work in businesses where they want to work, and gain acceptance to any universities that they are qualified to attend.

“This was not always the case in this country; even in the post-World War II period, discrimination against Jews in all these realms was commonplace.

But no more. For half a century, practical prejudice of this sort has essentially disappeared,” he added.

Yoffie wrote that while the Jewish community has witnessed acts of terrorism and vandalism motivated by anti-Semitism, they do not amount to any credible threat since “government officials and political leaders can be counted on to raise their voices in protest and activate the machinery of government to combat the forces of hate.

“There can be no excuse for seeing our situation as different from what it really is,” Yoffie wrote. “And our reality, as American Jews, is that we are not a community under siege. Let us say it plainly: the anti-Semitism that is festering elsewhere poses no danger to us.”

Esser Agaroth (2¢):

Eric Yoffie
clown of our generation

So, what does Eric Yoffie want us to do? Wait around until the "anti-Semitic sentiments" harbored by "millions of Americans" do become "translated into anti-Jewish behavior?"

Because only a handful of Jews have been killed or injured, in shootings or "knock-down" attacks? Or perhaps because those Jews killed or injured do not matter? That they did not do enough to assimilate amongst the goyim, that they had it coming to them?

I am simply asking if this is what Eric Yoffie is really trying to say.

Are these "Jewish leaders'" fancy jobs, cars, and "acceptance" by non-Jews really worth risking the life of even one more Jew?

Are they pulling the wool over American Jews' eyes purposefully, thus preventing them from reading the writing on the wall, to keep them in Galuth (exile)?

This is the second time in a week, I am posting the following video here on site. The Jewish Voices on Campus video is well-worth viewing a second or third time. Perhaps it will give Eric Joffe some insight as to the Jew-hatred, university students, for example, have been facing on campuses across the U. S.


(Tip: Emergency Aliya Now Facebook Group)

Here, I will cite one of the Reform [Bowel] Movement's favorite lines in Jewish texts to pick-out of context and distort. They have applied it to non-Jews, left and right. But, when it comes to our own...?

תלמוד בבלי סנהדרין לז,א

...לפיכך נברא אדם יחידי ללמדך שכל המאבד נפש אחת מישראל מעלה עליו הכתוב כאילו איבד עולם מלא וכל המקיים נפש אחת מישראל מעלה עליו הכתוב כאילו קיים עולם מלא....

BT Sanhedrin 37a
...Therefore, man was created singly, to teach you that whoever causes a single soul from Israel to perish, Scripture considers him as if he had caused an entire world to perish, and whoever preserves a single soul from Israel, Scripture considers him as if he had preserved an entire world....

Such un-Jews love to completely ignoring the halakhah (Torah Law), which they find to be "no longer binding." But, what they really mean to say is that assimilation amongst the international, global community of humanity, is OK, if not preferred.

In all fairness, there are plenty of "Modern Orthodox," who have been guilty of picking and choosing, taking thing out of context, and distorting them.

But, I digress...

Judaism is a religion based exclusively on Torah, both the Written and Oral. Thus, Reformism is not Judaism.

מערבב
"mixer"

Rather than pursue what The Almighty's Will is for us, His People, rather than fitting our lives into the rubric of Torah, Reformists seek to fit bits and pieces of Torah into their lives when it is convenient, and "feels right." Often, these bits and pieces, often barely, if at all, recognizable as Torah.

Whereas the Torah instructs us regarding our separate and distinct nature, and commands us to maintain separation among various aspects of Jewish life; Reformists are hellbent on mixing such things together: Shabbath and the work week, Jews and goyim, including intermarriage, kosher and treif, pure and contaminated.

Of course. Think about what God wants? Why would any rational person do anything like that?

And so, I ask you again are Eric Yoffie and the Reform Movement delusional or evil? Well, I do not know about Eric Yoffie. He could simply be prideful, greedy, naive, or blind. But, the roots of the Reform Movement were put into motion by those notorious for mixing things, the Erev Rav (from the "mixed" multitude).

Avi Weiss Steps Down! Or Does He?

ב׳ לחודש השמיני תשע״ה

Avi Weiss, [too] Modern [for] Orthodox[y] rabbi, has announced that he will be stepping down from his "pulpit." But, don't worry, the havoc he has reeked across segments of the Torah-dedicated community will surely continue.

Rb. Pinchos Lipschutz provides us with the best, overall summary of Weiss's unfortunate contributions to Modern Orthodoxy, as well as a brief history of the influence various trouble makers have asserted on Judaism over the years, and concluding with a scenario of the potential, final downfall of Modern Orthodoxy, and how it might be prevented.

I highly recommend reading his Lipschutz's entire piece. Below, I have listed a few tidbits from it.

Rabbi Avi Weiss

Rabbi Avi Weiss to Step Down

Rabbi Pinchos Lipschutz, October 22, 2014

Rabbi Avi Weiss, founder of Open Orthodoxy’s flagship institutions, Yeshivat Chovevei Torah and Yeshivat Maharat, and a vocal proponent of granting semichah to women, announced on Shemini Atzeres that he is stepping down from the pulpit of the Hebrew Institute of Riverdale (HIR). He had previously given up the presidency of Chovevei Torah....

...Weiss said he is not retiring, stating that he will still serve as rabbi-in-residence at HIR, adding that he would continue speaking and mentoring rabbinic students...

In his speech, Weiss called “Rabba” Sara Hurwitz - who he ordained - “my hero” stating that “although Rabba Sara is spending more time as the dean of Yeshivat Maharat, an institution which grants semichah to women, her contribution in the Bayit (HIR) has been historic, and it continues to be indispensable. A woman’s voice in the spiritual leadership of our Bayit as a full member of our rabbinic team is crucial to our future success....”
...In rejecting a geirus performed by Weiss, the Israeli Rabbanut explained, via its legal adviser, Harel Goldberg, “The Chief Rabbinate has been contacted by various rabbis known to the rabbinate, some of whom hold positions in the RCA [Rabbinical Council of America], who claim that Rabbi Weiss’ halakhic positions, as expressed in various incidents and under various circumstances, cast doubt on the degree of his commitment to customary and accepted Jewish halakha....”

Click here to read the entire article.

Netanyahu: Jerusalem Is Under Attack

מוצש״ק פר׳ נח תשע״ה

YNET: Netanyahu: Jerusalem is under attack
Palestinians continue to inflame tensions in east Jerusalem as prime minister orders massive reinforcement in capital after consultation with top security echelon.

Noam (Dabul) Dvir, October 23, 2014

"Jerusalem is under attack," charged Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday, less than 24 hours after a terrorist plowed through a crowd of Israelis at a Light Rail station.

The prime minister convened a security consultation at the Jerusalem Police headquarters with the internal security minister, the chief of police, the head of the Shin Bet, the mayor, and the regional commander – as rock throwing incidents continued across the capital.

Netanyahu ordered the assembled officials to emphasize Israeli sovereignty over all parts of Jerusalem using massive reinforcements.

"Jerusalem is not the only city under attack by terrorists; other cities across the world are, as well. But the offensive in Jerusalem is supported by the chairman of the Palestinian Authority, Abu Mazen, who glorifies the murderers and embraces the group they belong to – Hamas," said Netanyahu.

Netanyahu used the occasion to remind world powers of the threat posed by terrorism. "Against these acts we face international flaccidity. But there is no such weakness here. We will stand strong for our rights and our obligations to protect our capital."

Justice Minister Tzipi Livni, however, urged moderation in Israeli officials' public statements after the incident. "Condemning Abu Mazen's inciting remarks is justified but is not enough. We must also stop the tempestuous declarations, the irresponsible legislative proposals, the provocative construction, or the dead-of-night celebrations over buying homes in Muslim areas."

Livni emphasized self-restraint. "We have a massive responsibility. We one step away from the nationalist conflict turning religious – from the Israeli-Palestinian conflict converging around Islam. Now is the time to act wisely and responsibly. That responsibility falls upon the shoulders of both sides."

President Reuven Rivlin, who spoke at the Haya's funeral, said that he saw at the cemetery "the terrible pain of the baby's family."

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
Justice Minister Tzippy Livni (HaTenu'ah) criticizes the celebration of the misswah to redeem Eretz Yisra'el. Yes, it is a misswah, and so much so, that certain activities not allowed to be performed on Shabbath, are regarded with leniency for the sake of this misswah. Apparently, not only does Livni complete disregard such notions, she has already summarily decided that parts of Eretz Yisra'el do not even belong to us. How much longer with we stand for "self-restraint." That is same strategy that the Israeli Government employs most of the time. But, where has it gotten us?

It it the same old "hammer the Arab square pegs into the circular, Western hole" approach all over again. In other words, the secular, Ashkenazy controlled government persists in treating Arabs as if they are secular Ashkenazim. They are not. They are Arabs, with they own culture. Just pick up the Tana"kh (Bible) or mesekheth of Talmud, and you will see countless examples of Arab (Yishma'elite) culture. They understand force of strength, not "dialogue." This strategy has proven its success over and over again, in War of Independence (1948), the Six Day War (1967), and the Yom Kippur War (1973).

PM Netanyahu

On one hand, Netanyahu occasionally declares the truth be announcing, "If they could, the murderers would eliminate all of us – and this simple truth must guide the entire international community."

Yet, those of us who put two and two together and arrive at the answer of four, are demonized as racists, as extremists. It was an Arab who just killed a three month old, Jewish baby, and not the opposite. Even though representatives of the U. S. Government insist on calling the her death the result of a "traffic incident," it was a terrorist attack.

On the other hand, Netanyahu stands by, and watches the double standards which continue to prevail. Arabs continue to build on "disputed" lands without any permits. But, as soon as a dispute magically comes to light, buildings having stood for 13 years, are destroyed in a heartbeat. Arabs continue rioting and destroying artifact on Har HaBayith (Temple Mount). Even though they are the ones who are allowed to pray there, while Jews are not. The Arabs riot; it is the Jews' fault.

Why? Political correctness? Downplaying the truth to the public? Placating the "international community," our Prime Minister cares so deeply for?

Furthermore, no matter how hard Netanyahu tries to convince the "international community," especially those members also under attack from Muslim violence, to identify with Israel, it never works. He fails to understand that we stand alone as a People, with only The Holy One, Blessed Be He, on our side.

Meanwhile, President Rivlin has got a lot of hutzpah (gall) speaking at three month old Hayah Zisel's hy"d funeral, having just addressed the Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities at a special conference on “From Xenophobia to Accepting the Other.” 

“The tension between Jews and Arabs within the State of Israel has risen to record heights, and the relationship between all parties has reached a new low. The epidemic of violence is not limited to one sector or another, it permeates every area and doesn’t skip any arena. 

“I too have been exposed to verbal abuse every time I post something on my Facebook page which doesn’t sit well with one group or another. It is time to honestly admit that Israeli society is ill – and it is our duty to treat this disease.”

Israeli society has got a disease alright, but it is not xenophobia. Rather, the disease is that of self-destructive ideation and its resulting self-destructive behavior, often manifested in a dual diagnosis with the either the disease of assimilation or co-dependence.

Terror Attack In Jerusalem! (Updated!)

כ"ט לחודש השביעי תשע"ה

YNET: Suspected terror attack in Jerusalem; three wounded
Baby in serious condition; 8 wounded when car hits people waiting at the Ammunition Hill station of Jerusalem's Light Rail.

Noam (Dabul) Dvir, October 22, 2014

  Time marker 00:07 car turns right from main road into the light rail station. (Video Tip: Lahav Hakov)   A baby was critically wounded and eight other people were wounded near Jerusalem's Light Rail Ammunition Hill station in a possible terror attack. According to Initial reports a car attempted to run over people waiting at the station.
The car's driver attempted to flee the scene but was shot, apparently by the police. He was taken to a Jerusalem hospital together with the other wounded, which include two in moderate condition and four light. According to an initial investigation, the driver is a resident of East Jerusalem.


In wake of the event, the Light Rail said in a statement is running a patrial service between the Mount Herzl and Damascus Gate and the Givat HaMivtar stations.

According to MDA paramedics at 5:54 pm they received a report saying that a car hit a number of pedestrians near the Ammunition Hill station. Three people were wounded, including a baby, who was in serious condition together with another man; another person was lightly wounded.

Zion Square and the Ben Yehudah Pedestrian Mall is located between the Jaffa and City Hall Stations.
Hebrew University is not too far from the Ammunition Hill and French Hill Stations.
The Ohr Somayach Yeshivah is near the Shimon HaTzadiq Station.
The Mir Yeshivah is near the Shivtei Yisrael Station.
(Photo Credit: Maximilian Dörrbecker)

This is not the first time the capital has seen such attacks, and recent weeks have seen a number incidents on the train.

On October 12, the Jerusalem Light Rail came under a hail of stones in five separate attacks. All of the incidents took place in the train's East Jerusalem stations, near Shuafat, highlighting the perils the rapid transit system faces in the Palestinian parts of the city.


The recent two months have seen a rise in the number of attacks on the train, especially in the Palestinian parts of the city. Those using the Light Rail for their daily commute say incidents in the Shuafat and Beit Hanina stations have become routine. (cont.)

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
This article is worth reading. I am pleasantly surprised that even left-wing YNET lists the various attacks against the Jerusalem's light rail, and in particular within Arab neighborhoods.

These attacks still make absolutely NO sense to me. The light rail running through the Shu'afat and Bet Haninah neighborhoods, and along the border of several other Arab neighborhoods, such as Sheikh Jarrah and the Arab and Christian Quarters of the Old City, helps Jerusalem's Arab residents tremendously.

The city and national governments could have easily bypassed the northern Arab neighborhoods via Moshe Dayan Blvd. Instead, the route was built to run through these neighborhoods, for the benefit of their residents.

So, why are the Arabs shooting themselves in the proverbial foot??

Another point I picked out of this article was that the northern Arab neighborhoods are referred to as "Palestinian parts of the city." The second video from the Israeli Police refers to the three Arab youths as "Palestinians," instead of Arab Israelis.

No doubt the "solution" to the "Palestinian" issue, will be to "disengage" from them. Watch as more and more "Arab Israelis" transform into "Palestinians" by the mainstream, Israel news media. Which city's residents are next? Nazareth? Jaffa?

Despite Prime Minister Netanyahu's denial of giving up on, and giving up, half of Jerusalem, the stage has already been set.

Unacceptable.

May The Almighty forbid the division of Jerusalem!

Update:

Hayah Zisel Braun, age 3 months
ה' יקום דמה

The Esser Agaroth (10 Agorot) Controversy

כ״ח לחודש השביעי תשע״ה

I am very surprised that I missed this one, considering its name!

Wikipedia: 10 Agorot Controversy

10 Agaroth Coin
front and back

The ten agorot controversy refers to a conspiracy theory promoted by Palestine Liberation Organization chairman Yasser Arafat's appearance at a specially convened session of the UN Security Council in Geneva on 25 May 1990. At the session Arafat claimed that the obverse design of an Israeli ten agorot coin showed a map of "Greater Israel" that represented Zionist expansionist goals.

Bank Of Israel Logo

To support his claims Arafat produced a paper by Gwyn Rowley of the University of Sheffield published in GeoJournal. The paper titled "Developing Perspectives upon the Areal Extent of Israel: An Outline Evaluation" raised the question of what the maximum territorial extents of Eretz Yisrael were in the eyes of Israelis. As part of this inquiry Rowley presented a map of the Middle East with a superimposed outline based on the embossed pattern of a contemporary 10 agorot coin. In the text Rowley surmised:

Whereas Israel has never formally defined its borders one possible indication of Israel's broader territorial ambitions might be seen in the Israeli ten agorot coin which carries a map, seemingly depicting an area that would extend over to encompass present-day Amman, Beirut, Baghdad, Damascus and the N [northern] parts of Saudi Arabia. This same territorial depiction was carried on the earlier one sheqal coin. (cont.)

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
Gee. You would have thought that this "researcher" would have looked up what the Torah had to say on the topic of the "maximum territorial extents of Eretz Yisrael."

"In that day the Lord made a covenant with Avram, saying: 'To your seed have I given this land, from the river of Egypt unto the great river, the river Euphrates.' the Kenite, and the Kenizzite, and the Kadmonite, and the Hittite, and the Perizzite, and the Rephaim, and the Amorite, and the Canaanite, and the Girgashite, and the Jebusite.'"
Genesis 15:18-21

He could have even claimed the step-by-step progression of the "Zionist expansionist goals," with the following [approximate] map (Josh. 13:1-19:51). If The Almighty was trying to convey a message to His People through this Arab terrorist extraordinaire, it would not be the first time He has used a non-Jew or anti-Torah Jew to do so.

Of course, Arafat (may his name and memory be blotted out!) was wrong about his claim, but he should have been right.

Not only should we have held this vision in our hearts of Ge'ulah (Redemption) and the eventual borders of Israel, as promised in The Almighty's Holy Torah, but we should never be afraid nor embarrassed to be open about this vision. Too long we have been "afraid of upsetting the goyim (non-Jews), afraid of what they will think of us." Even though we have [potential] Jewish sovereignty over Eretz Yisra'el for the first time in thousands of years of foreign occupation, and have the power to assert our claim over Yehudah and Shomron (Judea and Samaria), and Har HaBayith (Temple Mount), for example, our galuth (exile) mentality persists in telling us that "we can't," and by extension, that "The Almighty will not aid us" in these endeavors (חו״ח).

In other words, most of those Jews calling themselves "Religious Zionists," those supposedly interested in paving the way for Ge'ulah with action, in addition to prayer and Torah study, are actually standing in the way of Ge'ulah.

Rabbi: "We can't bring the Qorban Pesah (Passover Sacrifice)."
Joe Jew: "Why not?"
Rabbi: "Because we're not ready."

Gee, I do not recall this consideration EVER being mentioned in ANY halakhic (Torah legal) source regarding this misswah (commandment).

Rabbi: "We cannot go onto Har HaBayith. It is forbidden."
Joe Jew: "Rabbi Moshe Tendler ascends Har HaBayith."
Rabbi: "I am not going to comment on that. It's forbidden."

Better yet, what about...

Joe Jew: "We have it in our power to annex Yehudah and Shomron, and to take full control over Har HaBayith."
Rabbi: (laughs) You have got be kidding. The Arabs would start the Third Intifada! The State must cautious regarding such things, and we must support the State. Am Yisra'el cannot afford to upset the "international community."

Are you vomiting yet, like I am, while I write this?

These are the Mamlakhtim, the diehard State-loyalists, those who confuse the State's laws with Torah. Thanks to them, Arafat's claim doesn't have a chance in hell of having any truth to it.

No, I do not wish for a Zionist conspiracy. I simply pray for openness and honestly regarding the Torah's message, which is that all of Eretz Yisra'el (Land of Israel) belongs to Am Yisra'el.

This is not because we were here first. We learn from Rabbi Shlomo Yitzhaqi's [Rash"i'] commentary, citing  on last week's Torah portion, just how irrelevant it is to be the first to arrive someplace. Look what happened to the Canaanites. Look what happened to us. Think about what we could be doing not, but aren't.

If we are unable to experience the vision spelled out in the Torah, illustrated in the maps above, and claimed to be depicted on the 10 Agaroth coin, and continue to insist that we will be rescued, without having to get our hands dirty, then I guarantee you that we will be making the process of Ge'ulah a heck of a lot more difficult for ourselves than necessary.

Why Didn't Saturday Night's Left-Wing Protest make the News?

כ״ח לחודש השביעי תשע״ה

I am very surprised that I could not find any reports on the demonstration I saw, building up last Saturday night. At 9:15, I saw it developing at the top of the Ben Yehuda Midrahov (pedestrian mall). A banner was being hung between two poles which read in Hebrew and Arabic...

עוצרים את הגזענות!

(Stop Racism!)

I suppose that someone may have filmed and clip, and posted it on YouTube. But when I could not find it on the Internet, with general and news searches, I did not bother.

The numbers were few. But, it seemed like it was just getting started. Or perhaps the bus carrying protestors from Tel-Aviv broke down. That is the Leftist' usual modus operandi [MO], shipping in ringers from Tel-Aviv, on Shabbath itself, in preparation for a post-Shabbath demonstration.

Avraham Burg was there, with his incredibly-shrinking kippah, mulling around, and chit-chatting with his cultural elite.

Avraham Burg
Former Speaker of K'nesseth (Labor)
Current French/EU Passport holder

What does Burg care? Getting a little too hot in France for you, Avraham?

When came back the same way at around 11:00, the banner was gone, and the area was dominated by a bunch of kids in kippoth and tzitziyoth, dancing to an upbeat version of הקדוש ברוך הוא, אנחנו אוהבים אותך! (Holy One, Blessed Be He, We Love You!). While I was walking up Ben Yehuda Street, I could not hear anything from the other direction, down below at Kikar Tzion (Zion Square). If any remnants of a protest was there, the usual, final destination of demonstrations in Jerusalem, then it was insignificant.

It continues to amaze me at just how little "religious" Jews know of Torah. Either they are completely ignorant of the fact that the Torah addresses everything, including how we are to interact with non-Jews, and not just "Shabbos and Kashrus shailos." Or they only listen to the "Acharonim Acharonim Acharonim," to "Rabbanim Tze'irim," and to anyone else who appeals to their galuth (exile) values and sensibilities.

Definitely tough Jews to reach and wake up.

Jewish Voices on Campus, What on Earth are you Still Doing There??!!

כ״ז לחודש השביעי תשע״ה

This video was going around the Internet. When I first saw it making the rounds, I just figured that it was another one of those silly, hasbarah, "please like us!" videos.

Boy, was I wrong.

I recommend watching this video, if for no other reason than to see just how wrong I was.


(Tip: Emergency Aliya Now Facebook Group)

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
After only two minutes into this video, I found that it was more than just your typical documentation of university campus, Jew-hatred. This was personal.

I picked up on the hints (00:13), and allusions to Alpha Epsilon Pi, the college fraternity of which I am a brother/alumnus (Ξ^Δ '87).

Please read the writing on the wall. It may seem to be trickier to read than the writing on walls in England, France, Sweden, and the rest of Europe. But, you owe it to yourselves to look at it, and look at it hard.

Just like Henry from Cal. Berkeley says, "It doesn't show up in the newspapers, because it's to be expected."

This video really got to me. It tugged on my heartstrings, and it tugged HARD. In fact, the video really upset me to the point of tears.

I am the one in Israel. I am the one on the front lines. I am the one who heard sirens this summer, and had to go into the bomb shelter. I am the one who survived an attack from a suicide bomber. I am the one North American Jews are always saying they are worried about, they are frightened for, they are praying for.

And yet, you are all the ones who are in danger, and I am the one worrying about you, and praying for your safety. This video was only the tip of the iceberg.

So much for silly, "Jewish leaders" who insist on proclaiming that...

“...our reality, as American Jews, is that we are not a community under siege. Let us say it plainly: the anti-Semitism that is festering elsewhere poses no danger to us.”

Such "leaders" are not leaders, but rather clowns (See Rash"i on Gen. 25:19).

Swastikas painted on the AEPi House, Emory University, just after Yom Kippur
(Photo: @AtlantaSmiles/Twitter)

And, even if you are sick and tired of listening to "aliyah rhetoric," and have no interest in hearing about "God and Torah stuff," I am obligated to get in your faces with it, anyway,...yet again, as it says...

לֹא תַעֲמֹד עַל-דַּם רֵעֶךָ (ויקרא יט,טז)

Do not stand idly by the blood of your neighbor (Lev. 19:16)

The U. S. and Canada are not your true homelands. They are only temporary places where we were able to find refuge, during our exile.

It does not matter how successful we have been at battling anti-Semitism, fighting for your religious and political rights, asserting our place in North American society, and making great contributions to it. It is still the exile, and being exiled from our only true homeland is a punishment.

The doors began opening gradually just over 100 hundred year or so. They were flung open in 1948/תש״ח, propped open in 1967/תשכ״ז, and further stabilized in 1973/תשל״ד.

Unfortunately, many Jews have been having trouble seeing this, seeing that the door has been opened for them personally. And so, they have been receiving some help from above to find the door, with a little, painful nudge here and there.

Please, may these nudges not have to get too painful, in order to get the message across.

It would be an oversimplification to call these kicks in the pants "anti-Semitism." It goes much deeper than that.

Aliyah is not "giving up," nor is it "running away." It's "running to...."

Jake from the University of Southern California [USC] says, "Antisemtism, hatred of the Jewish People, of Israel, is real. And I can only hope that in the future we will be able to get through it together."

Jake..., fellow brothers,... the only solution is aliyah. This is the only way we will be able to get through it together.

ΕΣΠΟΝΔΑ

Are You Prepared for Israel's Next Snow Storm?

ערב שבת קודש פר׳ בראשית תשע״ה

Last winter, when Israel was hit by one of the worst snow storms in its recent history, with about 19,000 homes losing electrical power. I was one of the lucky ones who did not. Yet, I think about what I would have done, if I had not been so lucky. Would I have been prepared to weather the storm? Will I be prepared for the next time snow or another surprise hits? Will you be prepared?

When I complain that Jerusalem winters are unbearable, my friends from New York, Chicago, Montreal, and northern domains, just laugh at me, and tell me that I don't not what real cold is like. When I tell you that I was born and raised in San Diego, where it is not unheard of to wear shorts during most of the winter, you will probably understand my point. I don't "do" cold. Give me one of these 35 C/95 F days anytime. You can keep the cold!

However, since I have chosen to live in Jerusalem, and not along Israel's Mediterranean coast, I have no choice but to "deal with" the cold of Jerusalem's winter.

View from my balcony:
The lights on the sukkah still haven't been taken down, and are collecting snow.

Last year's snow storm began on a Thursday morning, and continued through Shabbath. Travel within Jerusalem, on Sunday and Monday, was challenging, to say the least. Bus service was delayed during the early morning to avoid travel on iced over streets. Plus, just like every time it snows in Jerusalem, travel was always further complicated by everyone and his cousin coming into the city from Tel-Aviv, in order to see and enjoy the novelty of the snow.

While those of you living in New York, Chicago, or Montreal maybe rolling your eyes, I must emphasize that since snow is still a relatively rare occurrence in Jerusalem, the municipality does not see it as economically feasible to invest in the kind of equipment other cities around the world use daily throughout the winter. Instead, last year, we were told to stock up, and stay off of the streets. The city's economy might be stung, but accidents would be avoided.

Screen Shot: Live Kotel Cam
9 Teveth, 5774/December 12, 2013, 12:30 PM

My boss called me that fateful Thursday morning, and told me not to bother to come into work. Already out and about, I took the opportunity to stock up on food for the weekend and beyond, having in mind to purchase some food which would not require any cooking,...just in case.

However, if the power had gone out, I would have not have had any idea what I would do for heat. Even my awesome camping sleeping bag would leave me with a chill to keep me up most of the night. I had tried it out, so I already knew. Always test out your equipment!

Nevertheless, according to the chatter I heard after the storm had passed, I was much better prepared than most. I heard one man talking about how worried he was during the storm, that the food in his refrigerator would go bad, because thy did not have any power. Apparently, this man failed to notice all of the freezing cold white stuff laying around, which he could have shoveled into a bucket, and used to keep his perishables from perishing. Of course, he noticed the snow, but did not put two and two together.

Fortunately, one friend of mine who lives north of Jerusalem, thought to turn on all of the gas burners in his kitchen before Shabbath,* as they had lost electricity during the storm. He stationed his wife's bed there for her and their week-old newborn son. He and his daughters took every sweater, jacket, and blanket they owned, and camped out in another bedroom.

I have heard that a great many people become injured, or even die, from panic, and lack of preparation, than from the actual crisis or event itself. Even my friend who spent the night, this snowy Shabbath, had to remind me to fill up several bottles with water, from the faucet in the event that the freezing temperatures would cause pipes to burst, or affect our water supply in some other way.

One would think that such ideas would come to those of you in New York, Chicago, Canada, and Russia, quite naturally, just like knowing what to do in the event of an earthquake, and being prepared in advance for such an occasion is second hat to most Californians. However, that does not seem to be the case after all. Perhaps, we have become so dependent on technology, that our "thinking caps" have become impaired, when left without it.



Remember

Ask others with more experience that you. In mind case that mean learning about "layering," and the importance of wearing a hat, from a friend from Maryland. Likewise, during the summer months, I suggest to my roommate from upstate New York that he try jumping into the shower briefly, or just running the water on his neck for a few minutes.

Test Run
A few months ago, the power went out for a couple of hours. I was amazed that people did not know what to do with themselves, unless of course, they had a full battery on their computers and independent access to the Internet.

Lighting candles and reading a book, or going for a walk never would have occurred to them, except for maybe when their batteries ran out.

Recently, on a Friday, my power went out, while in the middle of cooking for Shabbath. I forgot where I heard this joke, but it is priceless:

Q: What does a 'prepper' call a power outage?

A: Practice.

Sure enough, I got some practice, as well as a friendly reminder to get my act in gear, and acquire what I have, so far, only been thinking about acquiring.

Truth be told, most of my cooking was done. I had only the meat left to prepare. As I knew that my local grocery store was open, I jaunted over to buy some charcoal, something which I really should have had on hand anyway. This experience also reminded me to get that gas canister I keep telling myself to get for cooking back-up, as well heating in an absolute pinch.

Well, once again, I lucked out. An electrician friend of mine was in the area, so he came over to sort everything out. My electric oven apparently was the culprit which tripped the electrical board. I would really prefer to have gas cooking appliances. But, as a renter, I have what I have.

For the coming winter, I hope to stop procrastinating, and buy a canister of gas to have on hand for back-up, if for nothing else. The gas canister can also be used for heat, in a pinch. Attachments can been bought which direct and diffuse the heat. But, I have been warned that it is not the heating system for use on Shabbath, without a proper gas heater hooked up to it.

I have even thought of the possibility of acquiring a wood burning stove, even just a small one for back up.

I have been, but must still confirm, that kerosene  heaters made for the indoors have been made illegal, for the populace's "own good." So, the option here would be finding a used one whose owner would be willing to part with. Kerosene  heaters made for outdoor use, are just that, made for outdoor use. As far as I understand, it is really not a good idea to use them indoors.

Jerusalem sits 800 plus meters in elevation. That is about 2,600 feet. It never gets within a few degrees below 0 C (32 F). If you are inside at night without heat during such temperatures, with all of your sweaters and jackets and blankets piled on, chances are that you will more likely than not, survive the night, Just like my friend and his family, I mentioned above did. But, what if you have small children or babies or elderly at home?


As part of my preparation for the coming winter, I have tried to talk about it with friends, particularly those with more experience than I when it comes to snowy winters. When I first moved to the East Coast, after living my entire life in California, a friend of mine who grew up in the Northeast, had to point out to me various things about living through the winter, I never would have thought of, everything from a hat, gloves, and thermal underwear, to layering clothing. I probably would have never thought of these things on my own.

Unforntunately, my experience, so far, has been that nobody wants to talk about the coming winter, let alone getting "prepped" for different case scenarios, such as power outages.

According to IsraelWeather.co.il, snow is expected in Jerusalem, this January. So, hopefully, as we get closer to Jerusalem, snow potential, my neighbors will become more amenable to such discussions.

Stay tuned!

*********

*The Torah forbids Jews from creating, transferring, and extinguishing of fire on Shabbath. The addition and subtraction of fuel is also forbidden to Jews on Shabbath.

The British Government Votes to Recognize a "Palestinian" State

ו׳ חוהמ״ס תשע״ה

Times Of Israel: British MPs vote an overwhelming ‘Yes’ to Palestine
274 support motion urging ‘the government to recognize the State of Palestine,’ while only 12 oppose, in vote laden with symbolism

By AFP and Lazar Berman, October 14, 2014

British House of Commons

British lawmakers voted resoundingly Monday in favor of a Palestinian state, in a debate unlikely to change government policy but laden with political symbolism.

Ed Miliband

The ayes carried the vote with 274 votes, against only 12 nays. Opposition Labour Party leader Ed Miliband, who is Jewish, voted in support of the motion.

Prime Minister David Cameron and other government leaders abstained, and more than half of the 650 Commons members did not participate in the vote.

The initial motion that was debated declared: “This House urges the government to recognize the State of Palestine alongside the State of Israel.” It was subsequently amended to add the phrase “as a contribution to securing a negotiated two-state solution.” (cont.)

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
In a nutshell, this decision has power over Israel and the Jewish People, for one, and only one reason.

We give it power.

Jack Straw

Labour’s former foreign secretary Jack Straw during the debate: “The only thing that the Israeli Government understand, under the present demeanour of Benjamin Netanyahu, is pressure. What the House will be doing this evening will be to add to the pressure on the Government of Israel. That is why they are so worried about this resolution passing. Were it just a gesture… they would not be bothered at all. They are very worried indeed because they know that it will have an effect.”

Well, Jack Straw got that right.

This is by far not the first time, nor I am afraid the last time, that we have succumbed to our sick and desperate, co-dependent, delusional need to have our existence validated and accepted from the outside, from the non-Jewish, "international community."

Opposition Labour Party leader Ed Miliband, who is Jewish, voted in support of the motion.

Gerald Kaufman with Hamas Terrorist Leader Ismail Haniyeh

He was not the only totally clueless, assimilated Jew expressing his un-Jewness in Parliament. MP Gerald Kaufmann (Labour) was there as well, "denouncing Israeli Atrocities in Palestine."

I suppose that the use of women, children, and the handicapped, by Hamas as human shields had nothing to do with the number of their casualties, and that the Jewish kids hiding out in bomb shelters were just chopped liver.

Even Jewish MP Mike Freer (Conservative) who resigned over the vote, warned that the resolution "harms the 'two-state solution' on the grand scale." Such deep internment in the galuth (exile) mentality never ceases to floor me.

I still cannot understand why Miliband, Kaufman, Freer, and others bother to invest their efforts in a country which is not even really theirs. Money? Power? Creature comforts?

George Galloway

Meanwhile, the non-Jewish MP's were not to be outdone. Infamous Jew-hater MP George Galloway (Respect) declared that "The West has double standards when it comes to Israel."

Well, I must say that he certainly got that right, but not in the manner he believes.

And though the Israeli Government is horribly flawed, often approaching the challenges which face the Jewish People from a backwards, and almost always Godless, perspective, is occasionally does try to do the right thing.

Those on the side of truth always win out.

Jews and non-Jews alike have insisted on the existence of some sort of genocidal, Zionist conspiracy being responsible for the limited deaths of Israelis, during the latest Gaza War. Of course, the truth is  The Almighty, is on our side, and showed us His mercy. 

His validation and acceptance is all that we ever need. It is high time that we stop wasting our time and energy on what human beings think about us, and focus.

No wonder why there is a rise in Jew-hating violence. History has shown that, unfortunately, this is  one of the most effective ways for us to get the message.

Will we ever learn?

What does Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein have to Hide?

ה׳ חוהמ״ס תשע״ה

JPost.com: Edelstein: Journalist hiring private eyes to tail MKs belongs in jail
Journalist's "100 Days of Transparency" project raised almost NIS 160,000 to follow lawmakers who "love darkness" and "resist transparency."

MK Yo'el "Yuli" Edelstein
Speaker of the K'nesseth

Knesset Speaker Yuli Edelstein plans to ban from the Knesset all those involved in a plan to hire private investigators to follow MKs in the name of transparency, and called for them to be put in prison.

Former Calcalist (Israeli financial paper) Knesset reporter Tomer Avital started raising money for his "100 Days of Transparency" project in July via the Israeli crowdfunding site Headstart, and as of Monday, has close to NIS 160,000 to hire private investigators to "make transparency-resisters [in the Knesset] sweat," as the project's page reads.

A video on the project's site (see below) shows MKs hugging lobbyists and attending parties with some of the wealthiest Israelis and points out that many MKs only attend a handful of plenum meetings. Avital, who also wrote a murder mystery describing an extreme case of what can happen when there is a lack of transparency in the Knesset, particularly in regards to lobbyists, plans to have investigators track the activities of lawmakers who "love darkness," meaning those whose schedules and activities are least transparent. (cont.)



Esser Agaroth (2¢):
Prison? Sounds a little extreme, doesn't it? If private investigators are operating according to Israeli law, then why should Israeli law makers be exempt? Does Speaker Edelstein believe himself and his colleagues to be above the law?

Granted, democracy has absolutely nothing to do with a truly, Jewish (ie. Torah) government. But, the statements above from the Speaker only add further support to the notion that the State of Israel is not even the democracy it claims to be. Rather, it is a deMOCKracy.

Tomer Avital

From the video alone, it appears that Tomer Avital is going after all Members of K'nesseth [MK] equally, those who are not transparent, that it. The 1:13 minute video carries criticism of Haredi MK's Litzman, Yishai, and Deri, but of secular, and even Arab MK's, as well.

As stated above, the video includes photos and clips of MK's with lobbyists, but also includes charts listing MK's and ministers with poor attendance, information which is commonly brought up and discussed the U. S. in regards to its members of Congress.

I know relatively little about Tomer Avital. He has had some involvement with One Voice, an "NGO dedicated to resolving the Palestinian-Israeli conflict," and is the creator of the "Networking The Gap" initiative, designed "to reshape the perception of those who still flatten their neighbors as enemies." So, I will hazard to guess that he and I are not on the same page politically. However, on the surface, his "100 Days of Transparency" project seems not only to be a good idea, but a good suggestion of a requirement for anyone serving in any government, claiming to be a democracy.

Ironically, the photo which now appears as Avital's Facebook profile picture is one of himself posing with none other than,...Speaker Yuli Edelstein. Together, they are holding up a copy of Avital's book HaMishkan, the novel about murder and the lack of transparency, mentioned in the above report.

If nothing else, Tomer Avital deserves points for cleverness.

On the other hand, Speaker Edelstein should know better, that anyone attacking the expectations of transparency for government officials, and threatening those individuals involved in pushing for it, would automatically be the target of suspicion himself.

And so, I ask, what exactly does K'nesseth Speaker Yuli Edelstein have to hide?

Jerusalem Residents fend off Arab Terror while Preparing for Shabbath

מוצש״ק חוהמ״ס תשע״ה

The following is a report from Jerusalem City Councilman Aryeh King (United Jerusalem Party), Erev Shabbath, October 10, 2014:

המחבלים עשו שימוש בבקבוקי תבערה וזיקוקים שנורו לעבר סוכות התושבים היהודים שהיו עסוקים בהכנות לשבת.

Aryeh King

בימים אלו מוקמים צוותי תגובה שכונתיים, צוותים אלה מתארגנים בכל שכונה ותפקידם יהיה להגיב לכל פעולת טרור באופן מיידי ועל בסיס התנדבותי והכול על פי החוק ובכפוף לחוק. הצוותים יתנו מענה רפואי, מענה אבטחתי וכמובן יתעדו את אירועי הטרור. חברי הצוותים יהיו בקשר בין חברי הצוות באמצעות וואטסאפ ויהיו מאובזרים באמצעי מיגון שאותם אני מתכוון לגייס מתורמים מחו"ל.

צוותי תגובה שכונתיים (צת"שים) הוקמו/מוקמים בימים אלו בשכונות התפר, עקבו פה אחר הפרסומים בנושא. אני בטוח שהצת"שים יהיו לכוח עזר לכוחות הביטחון בעיר ובעתיד הקרוב יהפכו לגורמים משמעותיים בהשבת הביטחון האישי לתושבי שכונות התפר בפרט וירושלים בכלל.

שבת שלום ושקטה.

מועדים לשמחה.

אריה

Esser Agaroth (2¢) Translation:
Terrorists used Molotov cocktails and fireworks were fired at the Sukkoth of Jewish residents who were busy preparing for Shabbath.

Currently, neighborhood response teams are being established. These teams are being organized in every neighborhood, and their role will be to respond immediately to any terrorist act, with volunteers, all according to, and subject to the law. The teams will respond to the medical and security needs due to terrorist events, and, of course, will document them. Response team members will be in contact with each other through WhatsApp, and will be outfitted with protective equipment, the funds for which I intend to raise from donors from abroad.
 
Neighborhood response teams (צת"שים) have been, and are continuing to be, established in neighborhoods along the border between West and East Jerusalem. I am sure that the neighborhood response teams will be a helpful force to the security forces in the city, and in the near future play a significant role in restoring personal safety, particularly to the residents of these neighborhoods, but also to Jerusalem in general.

A peaceful and quiet Shabbath,
and a Happy Holiday.
Aryeh



Esser Agaroth (2¢):
No additional comments are really necessary, except for an acknowledgement of Councilman King's continued commitment to keeping the public, both in and outside of Jerusalem, informed of the truth. He is a man of great integrity, and possesses true Ahavath Yisra'el, and sacrificed much for the sake of Jerusalem.

You can keep up to date by "liking" his page on Facebook.

Did you hear the one about the "Rabbi" who Walks into a non-Kosher Restaurant?

ערב שבת חוהמ״ס תשע״ה

The Algemeiner: Rabbi Says Booted From Jackson, Mississippi Restaurant for Being Jewish
Shiryn Ghermezian, September 24, 2014

An American rabbi said that he was thrown out of a Jackson, Miss., restaurant on Tuesday after the person taking his order found out he was Jewish, the local Clarion-Ledger reported.

The victim, Rabbi Ted Riter of Beth Israel Congregation, recounted on Facebook what he said transpired when he went to Wraps in Maywood Mart for lunch and ordered a salad. According to Riter, a man he believed to be the owner asked him, “A full size or a Jewish size?”

When Riter asked for an explanation, the man said, “It’s small. Jews are cheap and small. Everybody knows that.”

Shocked by the comment, Riter responded, “Did you really just say that?” The man then asked him if he was Jewish. When Riter replied in the affirmative, he was told to leave the restaurant. (cont.)

(Tip: Life In Israel)

Esser Agaroth (2¢):
I was quite surprises to see that the following comment of mine was actually published. Points to The Algemeiner!

Why do you insist on referring to such individuals as “rabbis??”

Individuals who distort, play with, and deny parts of the Torah have a dubious din (status) at best, and they are called rabbis??

In the future, I ask that at the very least you put the word rabbi in quotation marks or parentheses.

Like many un-Jews, it is not his fault that he lacks even the most remote understanding of Torah. In my opinion, the history of the so called "Reform" movement is based in the lack of belief in any of the Torah. However, knowing that the Torah was to powerful to attack head on, the "Reformers" took a lesson from the Tzadoqim (Sadducees), and chose to attack it one part at a time, the Oral Torah first. Like he has been indoctrinated into a Western/assimilationist (ie. anti-Torah) perspective of the Torah.

All through the Torah, Jews are commanded regarding various distinctions and separations, be they types of food, seeds, plants, fibers, potential marriage partners, or national borders. However, assimilated Jews rationalize these distinctions and separations away, or simply ignore them. Instead, they take the route of "building bridges" between distinctions and separations, and work toward the erasing of these Torah-mandated boundaries. In other words, when the Torah says to distinguish and separate things, they mix them together instead.

מערבב
"mixer"

Hmm...mixing,

...as in "mixed"

...as in "mixed-up"

...and as in "mixed multitude," (Erev Rav/ערב רב) those false converts who came up out of Egypt with us, and having causing us trouble to this day (Exodus 12:38).

וְגַם-עֵרֶב רַב, עָלָה אִתָּם, וְצֹאן וּבָקָר, מִקְנֶה כָּבֵד מְאֹד.

And a mixed multitude also went up with them; and flocks, and herds, even a great deal of cattle.

Oh, don't worry. Although this logic sounds a little silly on the surface, the same works in Hebrew as well. I simply wanted to make it accessible to the followers of Ted Riter and the like, those who actually think that such an individual is a "rabbi," a man of Torah, a teacher of Torah.

Some would say that it is a mistake for me to be so harsh, as I am in this post. Perhaps instead, I should be more delicate and diplomatic. This approach might attract Jews to my way of thinking, instead of frightening them away with a post, which you may see as "self-righteous," "negative," and any other descriptors you choose to insert.

I believe that it is true, that various approaches are now needed in order to reach the diverse kinds of Jews out there, during this difficult and confusing time in which we live. Some of these Jews, who are buried deep in their assimilation, have absolutely no chance of being dug out with kind, diplomatic words and patient reasoning. They need to be [proverbially] smacked in the face with the truth, in order to be woken up.

Jews like Ted are not necessarily Erev Rav, but most certainly the Erev Rav's tools, its "mixers," if you will.

Leaders in the so-called "Reform Movement," and other distorters and deniers of Torah, are another story, picking at the Torah piece by piece, knowing that they are unable to attack it head on.

The news reports of Ted Riter's venture into a non-kosher restaurant have all focused on Ted as the victim, Ted as the party who rises above the attacks on his people, Ted as the peaceful "bridge-builder," Ted who desires to reconcile and embrace his attacker.


Why hasn't anyone asked, "What in the heck was he doing at a non-Kosher restaurant, in the first place?"

Having a salad? I know Buddhists and vegans who are stricter about avoiding the ingestion of bugs, often found in salad vegetables.

But, this is really all immaterial.

It is one thing to try to get along with non-Jews, while we are in exile in THEIR lands. But, this is by no means license for the complete disregard for our nature as a distinct and separate people, a concept perhaps even more important important while in exile than not. No matter how the Erev Rav wants us to be, we are simply NOT just like every people.

These boundaries have been, and continue to be necessary for our survival. All it takes is for one Jew, who, for better or for worse, garners respect from the local Jewish community, to guide that community through his example, step by step to the paths of genocide, assimilation and intermarriage. History has shown us that danger to our people's very existence has been based on much less than having a salad in a non-kosher restaurant.

Are Arab Christians Aramaens?

ערב חג הסוכות תשע״ה

Israeli Christians' New Nationality: Aramaean, not Arab
Many of Israel's 160,0000 Christians, hitherto registered as Arabs, eligible to re-register as Aramaeans; their leaders are ecstatic.

Ido Ben Porat, September 17, 2014

Interior Minister Gideon Saar has instructed the Population, Immigration and Border Authority (PIBA) to allow the registration of a new nationality – Aramaean – in the identity cards of Christian citizens who were registered as Arabs until now.

In a letter to PIBA Director Amnon Ben-Ami, Saar wrote that he has “received three opinions according to which the existence of the Aramaean nationality is clear and obvious, as required by the Supreme Court's ruling.”

"The conditions required by the ruling for proving the existence of the nationality are present – including historical heritage, religion, culture, descent and language," he determined. (cont.)

(Tip: Jews News)

Well, of course, Aramaens exist as a people! After all, we Jews are partially descending from them. Rivqah and her nieces, Leah and Rahel, all came from the same Aramaen family.

And not only that, as Aramaen attempted to annihilate us, and is seen as worse than Pharoah, as we learn in the Passover Hagadah.

צא ולמד, מה ביקש לבן הארמי לעשות ליעקוב אבינו--שפרעה הרשע, לא גזר אלא על הזכרים; ולבן ביקש לעקור את הכול, שנאמר "ארמי אובד אבי, ויירד מצריימה, ויגר שם" (דברים כו,ה). מלמד שלא ירד להשתקע אלא לגור שם, שנאמר "ויאמרו אל פרעה, לגור בארץ באנו, כי אין מרעה לצאן אשר לעבדיך, כי כבד הרעב בארץ כנען; ועתה יישבו נא עבדיך, בארץ גושן" (בראשית מז,ד).

Go and learn, that which Laban the Aramaen sought to do to our forefather Ya'aqov--the evil Pharoah did not even command except for the males; but Laban sought to uproot everyone, as it is said, "My father was a wandering Aramaen, and he down to Egypt, and sorjourned there" (Deut. 26:5). This teaches that he did not go down to be invested, rather to dwell there temporarily, as is it said, "And he said to Pharoah, we came to sorjourn in the land, for there isn't any shepherding for the flock for your servants, for the drought is heavy in the land of Cana'an; and now please let us dwell in the land of Goshen." (Gen. 47:4)

But, how on earth are we supposed to believe that the Arab Christians are Aramaens??

Previously, I have been critical of Arab affairs expert, Dr. Mordechai Keidar. But, that was because I believed he was taking a wrong turn away from the Torah, when considering any solutions for the Arab/Yishma'elite problem which Israel faces day by day, hour by hour.

Here, too, Keidar provides an excellent academic analysis, regarding the historical and anthropological issues. This is why I bother posting a link to his Op-Ed here with a snippet.

Arutz 7 Op-Ed: Is There Really an Aramean Nation?
Are the Israeli Christians part of the ancient Aramean people rather than Arabs?

Dr. Mordechai Kedar, September 27, 2014

Dr. Mordechai Keidar

One of the last things Israel's Interior Minister Gideon Saar did before resigning from the Knesset was to recognize the Israeli Christians as members of the Aramean nation. The decision caused a media uproar, especially in the Arab sector, with most critics saying that there is no Aramaic nation and that the real reason for this step was an attempt to cause a split in the Arab population of Israel so as to "divide and conquer" and gain control of the Arab sector.

This calls for an investigation and an investigation into the veracity of an Aramean nation's existence must be conducted on two planes: the historic-lingual-religious one and the civilian one. (cont.)

However, once Keidar fails to relate to the only authority which matters, and I am not talking about the State of Israel's Interior Ministry either. Labels, new and old, are irrelevant here.

No one, not even most rabbis, dares to ask what the Torah says regarding the issue of which non-Jews are allowed to reside in Eretz Yisra'el, even temporarily. Forget the issue whether we have the power to change the status quo or not. No one dares to ask!