RUTHFULLY YOURS

https://www.jpost.com/Opinion/Right-From-Wrong-MeToo-harassment-and-Yaron-London-593948

On Wednesday evening, veteran Israeli broadcaster Yaron London opened the current-events program that he co-hosts nightly with Geula Even by issuing a “clarification” – demanded by his bosses at KAN, the Israeli Public Broadcasting Corporation – of something “inappropriate” he had said during Tuesday’s show.

London did this by repeating the anecdote that got him into trouble with angry feminists across the political spectrum, and explaining why he did not need to apologize for it.

The “scandal” for which he is being raked over the coals, and that has been eliciting non-stop calls for his ouster, surrounds a story he told in the context of an item about a social-media post by Arab-Israeli anchor Lucy Aharish. Aharish – who recently married hit series Fauda star Tzachi Halevy – complained about strangers approaching her on the street and asking whether she’s pregnant.

“Stay out of my uterus,” she wrote, requesting that the public respect her personal space.

Agreeing with Aharish about the liberties people take with celebrities, London recalled an invasion of his own privacy 10 years ago: A woman with whom he happened to be sharing an elevator suddenly leaned over and patted his belly.

“London, what’s this?” he recounted her commenting with uninvited familiarity, as a way of indicating that he had put on weight over the years.

Clearly embarrassed and irritated, London retaliated in kind.

“I touched her breast and said, ‘This also isn’t what it used to be.’”

https://www.palwatch.org/main.aspx?fi=157&doc_id=27739

Abbas’ Fatah Movement is publishing numerous photos from Palestinian demonstrations against the current Bahrain Conference that discusses economic aspects of US President Donald Trump’s Middle East peace plan. The demonstrations, the slogans and posters, and Fatah’s visual coverage of the protests emphasize the Palestinian hate towards Trump, the US, and Israel, as well as the Palestinian rejection of Trump’s Middle East peace plan – the so-called Deal of the Century – and the Bahrain Conference.

At a demonstration organized by the PLO in Bethlehem, at which Bethlehem District Governor Kamel Hamid was present and gave a speech, Palestinians hung an effigy of Trump on the gallows and later burned it as seen in the photo above and here: CONTINUE AT SITE

Most Arabs–especially those who didn’t tactically rename themselves “Palestinians” until the 1960s (and only then primarily to negate the rebirth of the Jews’ sole, minuscule state)–rejected President Trump’s long-awaited peace plan before its details were even announced. They repeatedly stated that it would be dead on arrival. See what PLO executive Committee member, Zuheir Mohsen, had to say about that above “Palestinian” thing on March 31, 1977, in the Dutch newspaper Trouw:

“The Palestinian people does not exist. The creation of a Palestinian state is only a means for continuing our struggle against the state of Israel for our Arab unity. In reality today there is no difference between Jordanians, Palestinians, Syrians and Lebanese… Only for political and tactical reasons do we speak today about the existence of a Palestinian people, since Arab national interests demand that we posit the existence of a distinct ‘Palestinian people’ to oppose Zionism…”http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/13146

Trump’s team, led by top advisers Jared Kushner and Jason Greenblatt, unveiled the economic part of the plan in Bahrain on June 25, 2019. The idea was to present a vision of what peace could bring not only to the combatants, but to the entire region and world as well.

In many ways, this is nothing new. Dennis Ross, chief Middle East honcho for President Clinton, was present when Yasir Arafat walked away from a similar deal almost two decades ago which would have given him and his people almost all of the disputed territories in Judea and Samaria (aka “West Bank” only since the 20thcentury) along with over $30 billion to sweeten the pot. There were later plans as well–all rejected by Arabs.

https://www.wsj.com/articles/arab-leaders-mute-criticism-of-israel-at-trump-administrations-middle-east-peace-conference-11561578645

MANAMA, Bahrain—The most striking feature of the Trump administration’s conference showcasing the economic side of its Middle East peace plan was what was largely absent: Criticism of Israeli policy toward the Palestinian territories.

Arab officials steered clear of speaking about Palestinian statehood or Israeli policies at the two-day gathering, which wrapped up Wednesday in Bahrain, a contrast with their comments at other international forums.

That was by design. U.S. officials sought to avoid the political issues that have dogged talks on the conflict for years and focus instead on the economic potential should peace be achieved. The Israeli government wasn’t invited, but Israeli businesspeople were. Arab government ministers with political portfolios didn’t attend, and most Arab governments sent either midlevel officials or ministers overseeing fiscal affairs.

The Trump administration hoped to build support from Arab states and investors for a $50 billion program to invest in and around the Palestinian territories over 10 years, before unrolling the much thornier political half of its peace plan.

Images beamed out of the conference showed Gulf Arabs in full national dress chatting casually with the small Israeli business contingent that Bahrain allowed to travel here—encounters that some here said would have been unthinkable only a few years ago.

https://www.jns.org/opinion/erdogans-loss-is-israels-gain/

When Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan declared, during the lead-up to the country’s March 31 municipal elections, that “whoever wins Istanbul, wins Turkey,” he couldn’t have imagined that the catchy campaign slogan was going to energize his rivals and bode ill for his own continued reign of terror.

Even the initial mayoral victory of Ekrem Imamoğlu—the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) candidate challenging Binali Yıldırım, a former prime minister from Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP)— three months ago in Turkey’s largest city didn’t seem to pose too great a problem for the Turkish despot. All he had to do was deem the election invalid on the basis of some phony “administrative error” and force a new round of polls. Which he did, on May 6, by having Turkey’s “Supreme Election Board” annul the Istanbul results.

If that didn’t work, he could always add a few dozen people to the already jam-packed jails, filled with anyone who dared to look at him cross-eyed.

Or so he must have thought.

What he didn’t realize, however, was that the extra few weeks before Sunday’s Istanbul election “redo” would work in Imamoğlu’s favor, enabling him to win by a far wider margin than the first time.

Imagine the Turkish tyrant’s horror at the massive crowds of secular CHP supporters, persecuted Kurds and disgruntled devout Muslims—sick and tired of backing the party hacks of an Islamist autocrat whose agenda never helped them improve their lot—gathering in the streets and hanging from balconies to cheer Imamoğlu.

https://bit.ly/2ZGSEoi

The US mindset on Israel – unlike the US attitude toward other countries – is a bottom-top phenomenon: a derivative of the US public worldview, which feeds legislators in the House and Senate and policy-makers in the White House.

The US mindset on Israel draws its strength from the religious, ethical, moral and cultural roots of the US society, which were planted in 1620 and thereafter upon the arrival of the Early Pilgrims, and bolstered by the Founding Fathers, who authored the US Constitution in 1787.

For example, the Early Pilgrims referred to their 6-8 week sail in the Atlantic Ocean as the “Modern Day Exodus” and “Parting of the Sea.” Their destination was “the Modern Day Promised Land.” Hence, the hundreds of US towns, cities, parks and deserts bearing Biblical names such as Zion, Jerusalem, Salem, Bethel, Shilo, Bethlehem, Dothan, Hebron, Gilead, Carmel, Rehoboth, Boaz, Moab, etc.

Furthermore, the Philadelphia Liberty Bell, which represents the Founding Fathers’ concept of liberty, features an inscription from Leviticus, 25:10, which presents the Biblical core of liberty – the Jubilee: “Proclaim liberty throughout all the land and all the inhabitants thereof.” Moreover, Yale University’s seal is inscribed in Hebrew letters: אורים ותומים, which was the power of the High Priest during the Exodus from Egypt. And, the seal of Columbia University features the four Hebrew letters of God: יהוה (Jehovah) and one of God’s Angels: אוריאל (Uriel – Divine Light in Hebrew). The battle against slavery was based on Biblical values and themes, such as “Let My People Go,” and a key leader in that battle, Harriet Tubman, earned the name “Mama Moses.”

https://thefederalist.com/2019/06/25/12-things-americans-can-learn-israels-pro-parenting-culture/

There’s longer maternity leave, better health care, designated days for families, and very little helicopter parenting. Can we learn from them?

Do rising expectations for parents help explain falling fertility rates? It certainly sounds logical, at least as one piece of a complex puzzle. Consider that our culture frequently paints parenting as joyless, anxiety-inducing, and expensive. So why would millennials and Generation Z be gung-ho about it?

In his Father’s Day column, Ross Douthat wondered whether current parenting norms are making parents unhappy. He observed that “parents everywhere seem harassed and exhausted, while marriage and childbearing both are falling out of fashion.” That’s true enough across the West—except for in Israel.

Consider that the total fertility rate for American women, “an estimate of lifetime fertility, based on present fertility patterns” dropped to a record low 1.73 in 2018. That puts us squarely below the 2.1 children per woman needed for populations to avoid shrinking. Israeli women, by contrast, average 3.1 kids apiece.

Before we consider why that gap exists, let’s stipulate that 8 million-plus people live in New Jersey-sized Israel, so this is not an apples-to-apples comparison. But I surveyed friends who’ve lived in both countries about the differences, and they offered several. Parenting in Israel is a completely different experience. Perhaps it’s time we consider improving our own parenting culture.

https://www.frontpagemag.com/fpm/274098/amb-friedman-exposes-radicalism-obamas-israel-caroline-glick

Israel’s elections do-over has pushed back President Donald Trump’s planned roll out of his “deal of the century,” which will set out his administration’s plan for achieving peace between Israel and the Palestinians. But all the same, members of his “peace team” are making headlines.

In an interview with the New York Times published on June 8, U.S. Ambassador to Israel David Friedman spoke in broad terms about what the Trump team envisages in regards to the ultimate disposition of the West Bank, otherwise known as Judea and Samaria.

Nearly a half million Israeli Jews live in the areas. Another 300,000 Israeli Jews live in neighborhoods in northern, southern and eastern Jerusalem neighborhoods. The Palestinians demand that in exchange for peace, Israel must expel all of the Israeli Jews and transfer their cities, villages, neighborhoods, and farms to the Palestinians.

Israel rejects these positions. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made clear in his last term of office that he will not remove any Israelis from their homes and communities in Judea and Samaria, let alone in Jerusalem.

In his interview with the Times, Friedman said, “Under certain circumstances, I think Israel has the right to retain some, but unlikely all, of the West Bank.”

On Sunday, his colleague Jason Greenblatt, Trump’s special assistant for negotiations, expressed his support for Friedman’s statement.

In an interview at the Jerusalem Post conference in New York, Greenblatt said, “I will let David’s comments stand for themselves. I think he said them elegantly and I support his comments.”

https://www.israelhayom.com/2019/06/24/arson-balloons-from-gaza-spark-8-fires-in-southern-israel/

On Monday afternoon, explosives-laden balloons floated over the Israel-Gaza border spark eight wildfires in the space of an hour. Security coordinator for one of the communities near the Gaza border blasts government’s lack of response as a “disgrace.”

Israel announced early Tuesday that it was halting the transfer of fuel to the Gaza Strip’s only power plant until further notice. The decision was a response to a surge of incendiary balloons launched from the Hamas-controlled coastal enclave into Israel.

Explosives-laden balloons floated over the Israel-Gaza border sparked eight wildfires in the space of an hour on Monday afternoon as they landed in Israeli territory.

The fires broke out in farmland near Shaar Hanegev and the Eshkol Regional Council. Firefighters and employees of the JNF and Israel Nature and Parks Authority were successfully battling the blazes in the Eshkol region.

One of the fires erupted at a memorial to the late Staff Sgt. Asaf-Yaakov Siboni near Kibbutz Nir Am. Siboni was a Nahal Brigade soldier who was killed when two IDF helicopters crashed in northern Israel in February 1997.

Another incendiary balloon sparked a fire at a nursery school in Kibbutz Saad, which was luckily empty at the time.