http://pjmedia.com/claudiarosett/benghazi-in-brief/ So, the Accountability Review Board has produced its much-awaited report on Benghazi. The unclassified version of the document was featured briefly Tuesday evening on the home page of the State Department’s web site, but has now dropped to somewhere less prominent and harder to locate. Perhaps someone had second thoughts about putting it out […]
http://pjmedia.com/rogerlsimon/2012/12/18/benghazis-back-sort-of/?print=1 Benghazi is back. In a way. The awaited special report [1] by an independent review panel led by retired Ambassador Thomas Pickering and the former Joint Chiefs chairman, Adm. Mike Mullen, has been delivered to Congress and offered few revelations, at least according to the Associated Press [2]. The report appeared to break little […]
http://pjmedia.com/lifestyle/2012/12/13/visitor-to-israel-needs-to-know/
Food, Manners and Unrequited Love: What Every Visitor to Israel Needs to Know
Prepare to gain a few pounds when you visit Israel. And don’t be surprised that “Palestinian” “refugees” live in houses bigger than yours.
In previous installments of this series, I’ve suggested famous (and not so famous) must-sees on your trip to Israel. You won’t want to miss your chance to float in the Dead Sea, snorkel with exotic fish in Eilat and fire a gun or two at Caliber 3 in Gush Etzion.
Now, onto some helpful hints and observations about everyday cultural cornerstones like food, language and manners.
PLUS: a crash course on words — like “settlement,” “refugee camp” and “checkpoint” — that don’t mean what you think they mean, at least in Israel.
FOOD
The Jews wandered in the desert for 40 years because they couldn’t decide where to eat.
Food is a very big deal in Jewish culture, so it’s not surprising that you can eat well in Israel, and as cheaply or as expensively as you wish or can afford.
Contrary to what you may think, not all restaurants there are kosher.
Many people believe that kosher food, wherever it is served, is healthier and cleaner. I for one do get this sensation when I’m in Israel, that somehow the food is fresher and more carefully handled. When it comes to kosher food, a bug on your lettuce isn’t just a faux pas — it’s a serious violation of the law.
Every hotel offers a breakfast buffet. It’s an Israeli institution, and differs little from a similar spread in North America except for the addition of chilled fish like herring, and the absence of bacon and ham.
In fact, the presence of dairy at these buffets means that no meat — pork or otherwise — will be on the menu. Milk and meat are not combined because — to put it simplistically — milk represents life and meat represents death. (So while there are McDonald’s in Israel, they don’t serve cheeseburgers. Coffeemate was invented so that Jews could enjoy “cream” in their coffee while eating, say, a steak.)
One dish that’s standard fare in Israel, and that we fell in love with, is shakshuka. “Dr. Shakshuka’s” restaurant was closed the day we visited Jaffa, which is too bad because it is world famous:
We went to the charming Nelly’s Kitchen instead, and really enjoyed it.
In the evening, across Israel, a “switch” takes place in restaurants and dining rooms: meat is offered but dairy is not. The types of cutlery at your table setting will be different, too.
Expect your lunch or dinner order to come with bountiful plates of appetizers like humus and salad. THEN your main meal arrives. Keep this in mind when ordering (and eating.)
Since I’m from Toronto, I’m familiar with the cuisine of most cultures, and have long been a falafel fanatic. The falafel is the “hamburger” of Israel, so be sure to try one. If you’re a bland “meat and potatoes” person, this and other Israeli dishes may be an acquired taste.
Starbucks isn’t there yet, but the Israeli equivalent — Aroma — is arguably superior anyhow. You get a little piece of dark chocolate with your cup of coffee, and their sandwiches are exceptional.
In Jerusalem’s Old City, treat yourself to a poppy seed bun or other fresh pastry sold by the Muslim merchants who push their wares along on old wooden carts.
Israelis love their baked goods and hard candies, too — those are for sale everywhere, especially in “shuks” or markets:
LANGUAGE AND MANNERS
In my experience, most Israels “understand” English but their fluency is lopsided:
Either they understand you but struggle to reply, or can speak English well but have a hard time understanding you.
If you hail from a big North American city, you already know the drill: Be patient. Speak slowly and clearly. Don’t expect strangers to understand your cultural references or jokes.
Speaking of which: The Israeli sense of humor tends toward the dry and straightfaced, and will leave some travelers puzzled or even offended.
For instance, when I mentioned to a hotel front desk clerk that I couldn’t understand a recorded message on my room phone because I don’t speak Hebrew, he shot back, “Why not? How dare you?”
He was joking around, but not everybody will respond well to that kind of ribbing.
Israeli’s are also notoriously blunt to the point of rudeness. Customer service isn’t as cloying and obsequious as you may be used to, especially if you live in the Southern or Midwestern United States.
“Civility is not a high priority,” as Barry Rubin delicately phrases it in his bookIsrael: An Introduction:
With no history of an oppressed peasantry or working class that “knew its place,” Israelis are notoriously obstinate, egalitarian, and insistent on their personal rights. The lack of a well-developed system of etiquette derives from the lack of a subservient or class conscious past. (…)
Israeli society’s pioneer ethos, familiar aspect, and contempt for snobbishness or class distinction is reflected in its high levels of informality. With the exception of the Haredim, most Israelis wear casual clothing. The ubiquitous Western suit and tie stay in the closet, even for weddings and funerals. (…) Punctuality is not a high priority. It is not unusual for events and even television programming to start later than scheduled.
Typical “Palestinian” “hovel” on the “West Bank.” (Credit: BlazingCatFur)
SETTLEMENTS, REFUGEE CAMPS AND CHECK POINTS
Jewish “settlers” live on “disputed” territory in varying levels of comfort. We drove through Ariel, which looks no different than a typical Western suburb; it even has its own university.
Since there are virtually no houses in Tel Aviv, just apartments, some Israelis live in “settlements” like Ariel and commute elsewhere to work. The cost of living in a “settlement” like Ariel is (according to our guide) about 75% less.
To get in and out of Ariel, we drove through one of those dreaded “checkpoints.” This consisted of an armed guy in a booth, waving us through. Wooo, scary!
THAT PHRASE IS DERIVED FROM A RACE, WHEN A CONTENDER RUSHES BEFORE THE STARTING GUN IS FIRED.
The popular meaning is:
To Begin Something Before Preparations For it Are Complete.
And that is exactly what so many pundits and legislators are prepared to do.
Caution is advised…..
http://www.thecommentator.com/article/2279/an_honest_liberal_writes_about_gun_control/page/2 When someone on the left reaches the same conclusion on gun control as a libertarian, you have to sit up and take notice I wrote earlier this month about an honest liberal who acknowledged the problems created by government dependency. Well, it happened again. First, some background.Like every other decent person, I was horrified […]
http://www.thecommentator.com/article/2277/exclusive_palestinian_leadership_helps_break_sanctions_on_sudan
Two brothers leading lavish lifestyles in London have attempted to secure lucrative oil contracts from Sudan’s sanctioned regime with help from the Palestinian Authority
Issam and Devincci Hourani’s involvement with Palestinian Authority corruption surfaced at a hearing before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs this summer, which heard that they were working with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ son Yasser Abbas on business deals all over the world, including in Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Montenegro, and Sudan.
The Congressional Committee heard that US intelligence officials had established that Yasser Abbas worked with Devincci Hourani to pursue an oil business in Sudan called Caratube International Oil Company (CIOC), and that the two individuals received help from the Palestinian Authority Ambassador to Sudan to win three oil blocks on behalf of CIOC.
CIOC, owned by Devincci Hourani, a US national, was prohibited by US federal law from engaging with the Sudanese oil industry due to US sanctions that have been placed on the Sudanese regime for its flagrant human rights violations related to the genocide in Darfur. It would appear neither Hourani nor his Palestinian enablers were deterred by Sudan’s atrocious human rights record however.
Hourani has never denied having been involved in discussions with the Sudanese regime about the purchase of oil blocks with the assistance of the Palestinian Authority. Furthermore, he has never confirmed the status of his negotiations about the proposed transaction.
Congress was told that the Houranis both received Palestinian diplomatic passports, which according to the US intelligence officials entitle them to travel with immunity. Diplomatic passports are reserved for diplomats and other important officials, such as ministers and heads of security services. Those who do not satisfy these positions can only acquire such a passport directly from the Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, raising questions about his role in enabling the illicit deal by granting diplomatic passports to two individuals who are not even Palestinian citizens.
http://www.americanthinker.com/2012/12/why_are_some_people_prone_to_obey.html
Despite mounting evidence indicating that the Affordable Care Act, aka ObamaCare, will, in fact, harm seniors; that the “stimulus” has been “nothing more than a political slush fund”; and that the myriad of regulations by Obama has stymied the economy, many Americans still persist in defending these actions. The denial of high unemployment, burgeoning tax rates to begin in a few weeks, and the general decline of the United States is breathtaking.
Moreover, from “the outset, the Obama administration’s handling of the most sensitive secrets of the war on terror has been worrisome.” On the one hand, our enemies learn about our intelligence. On the other hand, a cloud of secrecy and obfuscation lingers over the serious Fast and Furious agenda and the Benghazi events. Astonishingly, Congressman Jason Chaffetz has been “thwarted” by the State Department in contacting the survivors of the Benghazi attack. Thus, Congress has been denied access to these people, and the American public continues to be kept in the dark notwithstanding the alleged transparency claimed by the Obama administration.
Economists politely wonder why Mr. Obama doesn’t come around and see the light and admit that his plans are not assisting America. Others like Bill Whittle state that Obama’s incompetence is not the reason for our fiscal insanity; rather, the people running this country are (actively) trying to destroy the country, and they are succeeding. Thus, it is with malice aforethought that Obama and his cronies are bringing America to its knees.
Through outright bribes, there are those who have accepted Obama’s actions. For example, Mary Landrieu and Louisiana received $100 million, California received $300 million, and Big Labor had goodies tucked away in the health bill so that all these people and entities would support it.
http://www.americanthinker.com/printpage/?url=http://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2012/12/its_not_about_the_settlements_stupid.html The Washington Post, in its Dec. 18 edition, runs an article by Jerusalem correspondent Joel Greenberg about Israel proceeding with plans “for a surge of settlement building on occupied land” (“Israel’s building plans advance,” page A12). “Israel’s continued expansion of settlements is at the core of an impasse in peace efforts,” Greenberg writes. […]
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324407504578185230593926380.html?mod=opinion_newsreel
The Marines are the most celebrated but least understood of our four military services. They have done a brilliant job of burnishing their martial image, from the days of the 1949 John Wayne movie “The Sands of Iwo Jima” to today’s “The Few, the Proud, the Marines” commercials. With nearly 200,000 personnel and their own aircraft, tanks and artillery, they comprise one of the most capable military forces in the world. But so adept have the Marines become at telling their story—somehow the even less-than-heroic portrayals in “Gomer Pyle, USMC” and “Heavy Metal Jacket” have enhanced their reputation—that it isn’t always easy to separate myth from reality.That is a task that Aaron B. O’Connell, a history professor at the Naval Academy and himself a Marine reservist, tackles with brio in his absorbing account of the Marines between 1941 and 1965, “Underdogs: The Making of the Modern Marine Corps.” Prior to World War II, Mr. O’Connell notes, the Corps “was tiny, unpopular and institutionally disadvantaged”—it had just 50,000 men, and it was seen as an adjunct of the Navy. Its commandant was a two-star general who didn’t even merit a seat on the newly created Joint Chiefs of Staff in 1942.By the start of the Vietnam War in 1965, the situation was quite different. As Mr. O’Connell writes, “the Corps had almost quadrupled in size”; its commandant was a four-star general and a member of the Joint Chiefs; and it had long eclipsed its earlier role as a force designed to seize temporary forward bases for the Navy. It had, in fact, become virtually a second Army, which in Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan was to perform the same mission as the larger ground service.
Its growth in the face of opposition from the other services and civilian officials—Harry Truman wanted the Corps cut back to a naval police force—can seem puzzling. Mr. O’Connell tries to explain the success of the Marines by arguing that they had developed a culture like no other, which celebrated the individual warrior (“Every Marine a rifleman”), that extolled sacrifice and kept bureaucracy to a minimum. “They were the service least enamored with machines and computers,” he writes, “and most committed to intimate, spiritual, and transcendent themes.” That, in turn, made the Marines a favorite of politicians and the public.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324407504578185361458883822.html?mod=WSJ_Opinion_LEFTTopOpinion
There are many good reasons to improve gun control in the United States, including the obscene firepower available in many weapons. But better gun control will do little to prevent many mass killings, such as occurred last week in Newtown, Conn. Even if you ban guns completely, there are many alternative weapons available for use by untreated severely mentally ill persons who are so inclined.Knives, for example. On the same day Adam Lanza killed 20 children at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Connecticut, Min Yingjun stabbed 22 children at an elementary school in central China. Similar assaults using knives killed about 20 and wounded more than 50 children in China last year. Almost all the attacks were carried out by severely mentally ill men. So maybe we should ban knives.What about cars? In 1999 Steven Abrams, diagnosed with schizophrenia, drove his car onto a school playground in California, killing two young children. He had been hospitalized for psychiatric problems and had talked of killing children. Also in California, Marie West, diagnosed with bipolar disorder and with 19 previous hospitalizations, intentionally ran over an elderly man in 2000. The following year David Attias, diagnosed with bipolar disorder and previously hospitalized, drove his car onto a sidewalk in the Golden State, killing four and injuring nine. He then got out of his car and said he was an “angel of death.” Perhaps we should ban cars as well.
The heart of this problem is not the availability of weapons but the abundance of individuals with severe mental disorders who are not being treated.Severe mental disorders are defined by the National Advisory Mental Health Council as including schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder, bipolar disorder, autism and the severe forms of major depression, panic disorder, and obsessive-compulsive disorder. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, 7.7 million Americans currently qualify for the first three diagnoses, with 3.5 million of them receiving no treatment at any given time.
Among this 3.5 million, approximately 10%, or 350,000 individuals, become societal problems because of their untreated severe mental illness. According to federal statistics or academic studies, they comprise one-third of the homeless population and one-fifth of the inmates of jails and prisons, and they are responsible for at least 10% of all homicides in the U.S.
Mass killings by individuals with severe mental illness are one tragic symptom of a much larger problem. Over the past half-century, the availability of public psychiatric beds in the U.S. has decreased to 43,000 from 559,000, even as the population has increased. When individuals with severe mental illnesses are hospitalized at all, they are not kept long enough to become stabilized because of the bed shortage. Many are eventually incarcerated for petty crimes or worse.
A 2010 survey by the Treatment Advocacy Center reported that there are over three times more severely mentally ill individuals in jails and prisons than in hospitals. The problem is further exacerbated by state commitment laws that impede the hospitalization of those who resist treatment.
