If you haven’t read Eco-Terrorism? at Instapundit ; you must. Fortunately the only one killed was the hostage taker . If you haven’t read New CNN host bashes Beck’s alcoholic past at Don Surber ; you must. People in glass green rooms shouldn’t though mud. If you haven’t read Obama snitches out Arizona to the UN at Ace of Spades HQ; you must. Read More »
Soccer Dad 
With something like a 10-60 record as coach of my children's soccer teams why do I do it? Because I'm Soccer Dad!
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Submitted 09/02/10
This weeks’ Watcher’s Council nominations are up. Council Submissions The Colossus of Rhodey – Islamophobia Right Truth – Look For Another Lawsuit or Two Bookworm Room – Zoning, religion, guns and the Bill of Rights VA Right – NYC Cabbie Slashed by Read More »
Tom’s slander of rav yosef
Thomas Friedman’s column had one other major problem. Because all the extremists are now doubling down. Last week, insurgents aligned with Al Qaeda boasted of killing 56 innocent Iraqis. On Tuesday, Palestinian gunmen murdered four West Bank Israeli settlers, including a pregnant woman; Hamas proudly claimed credit. Read More »
Friedman’s false history
Thomas Friedman – the master of pithy phrase that means nothing and firm believer that there’s always one more Israeli concession that’s necessary for peace in the Middle East – clearly has experienced a different history from the one I did. Read More »
Great News! “Iran to guard universities against ‘plots’”
A “liberal democratic environment”–horrors ! Minister of Science, Research and Technology Kamran Daneshjoo says the “enemies” of Iran are plotting a cultural invasion of the country’s universities. Read More »
The New York Times’ Confused Attack On The Israeli Victims Of Hamas Terrorism
What is it about The New York Times and terrorists? In June 2007, Ahmed Yousef–political adviser to Hamas leader Ismail Haniya, who became the prime minister the following year–wrote an editorial in the New York Times about What Hamas Wants . Read More »
Where Are The Tapes Of Hamas Training Exercises For Killing Unarmed Civilians?
he Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades take full responsibility for the heroic operation in Hebron. Official statement by Hamas I wonder what the point is. I mean, we see videos of these exercises by both children and by adults: jumping through hoops of fire and other exotic training exercises. Read More »
Go back to bed, hosni, you’re delusional
Egypt’s President Hosni Mubarak, (or a ghost writer) apparently has arisen from his sickbed to contribute an op-ed to the New York Times, A Peace Plan within our grasp . Among the elements of peace that Mubarak champion is: First, we must safeguard the peace process from further outbreaks of violence. Read More »
30 days for being a nuisance
I didn’t know that it was a crime to be a nuisance. But apparently it is . Jersey Shore’s Snooki Charged with Annoying People Given the proliferation in recent years of celebrities and pseudo-celebrities, maybe this will solve the problem. Send them away for annoying people. Read More »
The “cbm” imbalance
The New York Times today reports Killing of Israeli Settlers Rattles Leaders . First of all, they were not settlers, they were people. When terror attacks claim the lives of Jews living in Judea and Samaria, the Times can’t keep its politics out of the reporting. I noticed this too, after the massacre of the Hatuel family . Read More »
Interesting but Nonsense, courtesy of the NY Times
The NY Times is out to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, even though its editorial writers will then have to scrounge for new subject matter. No matter, it forges ahead with two ambitious recent offerings. Read More »
Ezzedeen Al-Qassam Brigades Information Office: “Joy and maximize joy in the Gaza Strip Hebron …
Autotranslated , but understandable a good deal of the time: Pervaded atmosphere of joy and happiness the Gaza Strip, after a heroic Hebron, which was adopted by the “al-Qassam Brigades” military wing of the movement “Hamas”, which resulted in the deaths of four rapists Zionists. Read More »
“I … am in the position to grant nothing”
Via Daily Alert blog . An article in the UAE’s the National Abbas is a man in exile, even among his own All Palestinian political factions, bar one, have denounced the direct talks, some in harsher language than others. Only Fatah, Mr Abbas’s own group, supports direct talks. Even among its members, though, there are plenty of disapproving voices. Read More »
Cohen’s revision
A few years ago, Richard Cohen wrote an article saying that Israel was a mistake . Though I’ve read that he didn’t mean it the way he wrote it, it was still offensive. Today he writes, Time Stands Still in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict , which, I believe what he was trying to say in that earlier column. Read More »
This is a defense?
In Paul Bedard’s Rewriting History on Kennedy’s Chappaquiddick Accident he writes (via memeorandum ): Now, a year after Kennedy died, his lifelong biographer Burton Hersh, armed with fresh interviews with Kennedy’s mistress at the time, tells Read More »
Is Obama More Like Netanyahu–Or Abbas?
The real problem undermining the Mideast peace talks, Abbas’s lack of a mandate , results in a situation where Abbas is a man in exile, even among his own : All Palestinian political factions, bar one, have denounced the direct talks, some in harsher language than others. Only Fatah, Mr Abbas’s own group, supports direct talks. Read More »
Welcome, mr brisbane
The New York Times has a new public editor. I am skeptical of this position. In most newspapers the public editor or ombudsman has the job of explaining why the common folk don’t understand the wisdom of the news gatherers. While I wish Arthur Brisbane success is his new job, this paragraph in his introduction bugged me. Read More »
Council speak 08/30/10
The Watcher’s Council has spoken . Here are this week’s winning submissions! Council Winners First place with 2 2/3 votes! – The Razor – Tolerating Intolerance Second place *t* with 1 1/3 votes – Rhymes With Right – The Tension Of Two Visions Of Read More »
The “cbm” maneuver
Helene Cooper contributes a perfectly predictable Early Obstacle at Start of Mideast Talks , to the discussion of peace talks in the Middle East. Read More »
Abuminah’s abominable op-ed
Ali Abuminah, the founder of the anti-Israel website, Electronic Intifada, has been given op-ed space in the New York Times. In that space he has written the highly misleading, Hamas, the I.R.A. and Us . Read More »
Musical monday #156
Welcome to Musical Monday a weekly feature that Elie and I alternate hosting – sometimes getting a little help from our friends . Though Yitz figured out the theme, there are still plenty of songs to be ID’d from Musical Monday #155 . Read More »
The post-w “either you’re with us or you’re against us”
Charles Krauthammer hits one out of the park with The last refuge of a liberal . Liberalism under siege is an ugly sight indeed. Just yesterday it was all hope and change and returning power to the people. But the people have proved so disappointing. Read More »
Working together might be more productive than boycotting
Robert Mackey, unsurprisingly , gives a promo to Israeli actors who refuse to perform in the city of Ariel. Two Israeli actors have announced that they will not travel with the country’s national theater company to perform in a new cultural center nearing completion in the West Bank settlement of Ariel. Read More »
You don’t have to dig so deep to find the antisemitism though
The attack on a cabbie and the desecration of a mosque have led some hysterical folks to suggest that the debate over the Ground Zero Mosque has unleashed a tide of anti-Islam behavior. (via memeorandum ) Jonah Goldberg, though, throws some cold water on the hysteria . (via Daily Alert blog ) Let’s put this in even sharper focus. Read More »
This statement is false
Levi Johnston finds himself in a logical paradox . Levi Johnston, the father of Sarah Palin’s grandson, says he wishes he hadn’t apologized for telling lies about the former Alaska governor because he’s “never lied about anything.” (via memeorandum ) In other essential celebrity news the twice future and now never, Mrs. Read More »
Gilad Schwartz z”l
Based on the searches for “Gilad Schwartz,” I assumed the worst. Unfortunately, I was correct. Info is here . Read More »
The bigoted non-bigots
Nina Shea in Ground Zero Mosque: Who’s in Charge? concludes: Regarding the Ground Zero mosque, based on the information provided by the two partners in the project, we know very little about who will eventually be its directors, or who will fund it. Read More »
Tolerance is a two way street
The New York Times collected reactions to the Park51 controversy from around the world. I have no idea how representative the reactions are to the societies they’re from, but some are interesting. Read More »
Submitted 08/26/10
This week’s Watcher’s Council nominations are up ! Council Submissions The Colossus of Rhodey – Same situation, less tolerance Right Truth – The Expendables Works Wolf Howling – Victory In Iraq VA Right – Republican Best Case Scenario: 53 Seats in US Read More »
Will still in israel
Today he writes, In the Mideast the peace process is only a mirage : The biggest threat to peace might be the peace process — or, more precisely, the illusion that there is one. The mirage becomes the reason for maintaining its imaginary “momentum” by extorting concessions from Israel, the only party susceptible to U.S. pressure. Read More »
Council speak 08/25/10
A little late, but the Council has spoken . Last week’s top vote getters were: Council Winners First place with 2 2/3 votes! – The Razor – The Rage Beneath The Surface Second place with 1 2/3 votes – The Glittering Eye – Do Differently Non-Council Read More »
Rice is nice
Thanks to the promotion department at 1057 FM – the Fan , I was invited to bring a guest to get photographed with Ray Rice My guest was my 11 year old Ravens fanatic son, who has been walking on air since he found out that he’d get to be photographed with Ray Rice. Read More »
What if Rauf really is “moderate”?
Christopher Hitchens has a current piece on the Mosque-troversy. Besides hoping that means his cancer treatments are gong well, I would like to examine what he has to say. Read More »
Peace is coming, why am i annoyed?
In Mideast Talks to look forward to? David Makovsky writes: Security cooperation between the PA and Israel has substantially improved. In 2002, 410 Israelis were killed by suicide bombings and other attacks emanating from the West Bank; in the past three years, Israel has suffered one fatality from one such attack. Read More »
Obama reagan
via memeorandum . Dan Balz of the Washington Post wrote a few days ago that Reagan’s first term offers measuring stick for Obama . Obama’s presidency has looked like Reagan’s in some broad ways. Both men succeeded unpopular presidents of the opposite party. Read More »
The religious freedom argument
Some time after I first read a Washington Post editorial advocating for the Ground Zero Mosque (or Islamic center) on the grounds of religious freedom , I remembered that the Post’s view on the topic wasn’t necessarily so categorical. Read More »
New York Times concerned that concern about extremism causes extremism
“Some experts say” is Journalist-speak for “I believe the following”: Some counterterrorism experts say the anti-Muslim sentiment that has saturated the airwaves and blogs in the debate over plans for an Islamic center near ground zero in Lower Read More »
Gaza-bag
Today Ethan Bronner of the New York Times reports on his trip into Gaza. You see in recent months embarrassing reports have come out that have suggested that perhaps poverty in Gaza was not nearly as bad as advertised by the likes of Lauren Booth . Read More »
The unmentioned co-conspirator
Last week Amin al-Hindi died . Amin al-Hindi, an associate of the Palestinian leader Yasir Arafat and a former Palestinian Authority intelligence chief who was widely suspected of having played an organizing role in the deadly attack on Israeli athletes at the 1972 Munich Olympics, died Tuesday in Amman, Jordan. He was 70. Read More »
What does the title “king” mean to you?
Last week the Washington Post reported: New restrictions provoke unusually strong wave of criticism among Jordanians . Read More »
Why not arm our enemies?
There are few analysts out there with the inside knowledge of what’s going in Lebanon who know as much as Michael Young does. Still reading his description of the Lebanon, it’s hard to see who the good guys are . Read More »
Jewish blogging this week
The latest JPIX is up at I wish I were a photographer . Thanks for including my pictures from our trip to Niagara. If they convince someone else to make the trip , that would be amazing! Ruti Mizrachi hosts Haveil Havlalim #281 . Both carnivals are well organized and beautifully illustrated. Read More »
Did I write three …
… articles by George Will . I mean 4. Today in Many possible Israeli concessions would be suicidal Geroge Will writes: Twenty-one Israeli settlements were dismantled; even the bodies of Israelis buried in Gaza were removed. Read More »
They Do Have A Right To Build A Mosque On Ground Zero–But That Right Does Have Limitations
In the debate about the plan to build a mosque at Ground Zero, the straw man that this is all about the right to build that mosque is getting a real workout.Few argue that this is about the right to build that mosque, but even granting that right leaves the question of its limitations . Read More »
Islam Has A History Of Building Mosques Over Other Religions’ Ruins
Here is an article by historian Dr. Steven Carol, which appears originally on the Statebrief blog, where he expands on the number of mosques built on the ruins of buildings of other religions : Carol: How a Mosque at Ground Zero is Viewed in the Arab-Muslim World By Dr. Read More »
Free-speech crusaders thwarted
It seems to be a rule in politics that pure accusations of hypocrisy are hard to come by. The abstract notion of someone being hypocritical is simply not that interesting to people. Read More »
Forget “Who Is A Jew”–Both Obama And Rauf Muddy The Waters On ‘Who Is A Muslim’
It’s getting pretty confusing. According to a Pew survey people are unsure about Obama’s religion This has led Dry Bones to point out: But while no one seems to think that Obama is Jewish, the Ground Zero Mosque imam Feisal Abdul Rauf says that he’s Jewish. Read More »
Ho hum another condemnation of israel by the un
Not content to have blown a single incident up out of all proportion, the New York Times is now acting as a press agency for the United Nations. In Report Criticizes Gaza Restrictions , Ethan Bronner reported: A United Nations report issued on Thursday says the Sweleims are part of 12 percent of the population of Gaza — 178,000 people out of 1. Read More »
Objectors not bigots
via memeorandum Jeffrey Goldberg : The right-wing campaign against the so-called “Ground Zero mosque” includes vicious personal attacks on the Muslim cleric who leads the Cordoba Initiative, the organization behind the plan. Read More »
What’s so funny about peace, love and a mosque near ground zero?
In an editorial today, the Washington Post asks Where are the Republicans who will reject pandering and prejudice? BROADLY SPEAKING, there seem to be three strands of argument against building a mosque or Muslim community center two blocks from Ground Zero in Lower Manhattan. Read More »
Third in a series by george will
In recent weeks, George Will has written two excellent columns about Israel and the Middle East: Netanyahu, the anti-Obama and Netanyahu’s warning . Read More »
Vacation in niagara
Last week we drove up to Niagara Falls. It was a wonderful vacation. I don’t think I’ve ever seen natural phenomena as awesome as the falls. After talking to numerous friends, we decided to get a package to the Canadian side attractions. I’m not unhappy we did as the Horseshoe Falls are located on the Canadian side. Read More »
The unique voice of abd al-rahman al-rashed
A number of people have quoted Abd Al-Rahman Al-Rashed on his opposition to the Park 51 Islamic Center . He is not your average Arab commentator. Barry Rubin has quoted him favorably a couple of times . Read More »
Disparate columnists notice the anti-israel trend
Though I already wrote about this, a week and a half ago Thomas Friedman, in Steal this movie wrote: I write about this now because there is something foul in the air. It is a trend, both deliberate and inadvertent, to delegitimize Israel — to turn it into a pariah state, particularly in the wake of the Gaza war. Read More »
The spirit of the idf
Why this has already been worth three stories in the New York Times, I have no idea, but Robert Mackey weighs in again on the former IDF soldier who posted controversial pictures to her Facebook page. Read More »
Two quick baseball stories
From Ken Rosenthal : Mike Fontenot, meanwhile, had only one question when Cubs assistant GM Randy Bush and acting manager Alan Trammell informed him that he had been traded in the middle of the Giants-Cubs series in San Francisco: “What do I do, just Read More »
Re-defining chutzpah
No doubt you’re familiar with the definition of chutzpah as “A man kills his parents and then throws himself on the mercy of the court because he’s an orphan.” This is as close to that as you’re going to get. Read More »
Ma’an: Haniyeh says PA “waging war against Islam”
Palestinians vs . Post-Palestinians: Gaza government Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh accused the Palestinian Authority on Monday evening of waging a war against religion and Islam. Read More »
Shades of moderation
Two weeks ago Jeffrey Goldberg wrote, If He Could, Bin Laden Would Bomb the Cordoba Initiative (via memeorandum ): This seems like such an obvious point, but it is apparently not obvious to the many people who oppose the Cordoba Initiative’s planned Read More »
