Category: politika
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King Gaydamak of Jerusalem.
Charity is good and all, and everyone likes a nice project now and again. But this is going a little far for a hobby, right? Walking through the streets of Jerusalem, I turn my head and see the giant face of Arkadi Gaydamak: I guess it’s unnerving because no one really knows what the Russian-Israeli…
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Internet Media and me.
I was asked to participate on a panel discussion on Monday, representing Mideast Youth. The panel is called: Internet Media: Strategies and Challenges facing Internet News Web and Blog sites. I think I’ll focus on the fact that Mideast Youth is more than a media center or news blog. It’s actually about communication between people…
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On museums and Annapolis – shmalapolis.
Jerusalem is once again hosting חמשושלים, that period when museums go late Thursday nights and restaurants discount themselves for the weekend.We chose to visit the Menachem Begin Heritage Center. I never felt any specific or strong feelings towards Menachem Begin – the sixth prime minister of Israel and former Beitar movement head and Irgun strategizer.…
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Brothers, sons, teachers, students.
Not quite street art, but temporarily tonight Keren HaYessod street was painted with the anger and frustration of local teachers: The sign reads: “Brother, brother! Your son is my student!” Sometimes, this country seems like one big block party where literally everyone is separated by a few degrees. In this case, the holders of the…
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Playing the PeaceMaker… from your desktop.
Not sure I’ve ever mentioned this ‘out loud’ here before, but I maintain a second blog called Better Than Misery which covers my journey as a mediation student. The latest post I wrote is actually relevant both here and there, so I thought I’d bring some attention to it here: Yesterday, Haaretz newspaper did a…
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Die lucky bush.
This one had us laughing when we realized what it meant: I’m not going to give it away… Read it really fast… And think in Hebrew. Don’t get it? Here it is in literal English: “Enough of the conquering.” A highly political message, but well done.
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Rally at Kikar Rabin for namesake's memory.
On Saturday night an assembly is being held in the memory of Yitzhak Rabin, who was assassinated 12 years ago in the kikar that now has his name. Based on the giant sign I saw hanging in the square and based on some of the articles and other signs I’ve see, there seems to be…
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Seeing rainbows.
My friend put it this way: The Gay Pride Parade held today in Jerusalem worked out well, since it was so Jerusalem. What makes it Jerusalem? The quiet chill, the relaxed togetherness of the marchers? The modest expression of pride? Whatever it is, it was, without a violent protester in sight (although there were some…
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Animal rights in Israel.
While I’m sure there are a thousand other things Knesset could be busy with (apparently something like 70% of their passed laws are not implemented or enforced), here’s a change… Import of animal-tested cosmetics to be banned Education, Culture, Sports Committee pass bill banning import, marketing of animal-tested cosmetics, detergents, to be implemented by 2009.…
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Presidential charity and the forever loser.
Ahh, Shimmy. You’re the newest – and ninth – President of Israel. But even when you win, you don’t win. (The other candidates bowed out as Peres was only 3 Knesset votes shy of the necessary majority. The man who has served the government of Israel probably more than any other person since 1948 has…
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City feature: Sederot
Volunteering I’m a bit tired of always saying how good it would be to volunteer ’round these parts. Since I’ve been here, my newspaper has delivered the disengagement, Kassams in Sederot, Katyushas and war in the North, and Kassams in Sederot. We went down to Sederot today to volunteer with Lev Echad, which is an…
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How to get by these days.
These are hard times. There’s war in the air. If you’re feeling despair, here’s an exercise to make you feel better: 1. Open a new file or folder in your computer. 2. Name it “Ehud Olmert”. 3. Send it to the trash. 4. Empty the trash. 5. Your computer will ask you, “Do you really…