Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 3054 - 3078 of 3712
There is no world leader more hated by bien-pensant liberals in America and Europe than Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Whereas once the bile was directed at former U.S. President George W. Bush—for invading Iraq and Afghanistan, for identifying radical Islam in both its Shi’a and Sunni variations as an existential threat, and for backing Israel—it’s now largely focused on Netanyahu, an alleged “racist” and “war criminal” who just happens to have won a resounding vote of confidence from the Israeli electorate on March 17. Two N... Full story
JERUSALEM (JTA)—Transitions are never easy. You decide to leave one place that is known to you for some unfamiliar territory. You don’t feel quite like yourself (and probably won’t for a while). You try to act like everything is fine even though you know that your whole life has just been upended. It will take time until things begin to fall into place— when you start to integrate the “old” you into your new identity, when you can trust that your life will make sense as you take this step into the unknown. And while we all might experience... Full story
If you look for the beginnings of the turmoil in the Middle East and the reason for the incredible upheaval of the past 10 years or so, you have to go back to the First World War. With the war raging in France and Germany, there was scant attention paid to the Middle East and the Caliphate. The Ottoman Empire had in essence, replaced the Holy Roman Empire as rulers of a great swath of the Middle East. They had declared neutrality in this European dust up and the Sultan in Istanbul hoped to keep it that way. But a couple of German war ships... Full story
(JTA)—When Hillel International President Eric Fingerhut announced his decision to withdraw a commitment to speak to over 1,000 students at the upcoming J Street National Conference, he expressed only one major regret. In his statement last week, Fingerhut lamented that he would miss the opportunity to “thank those who have been active in the fight against BDS.” Indeed, he made clear that the reason he was interested in attending in the first place was “to thank those who have joined in the fight against BDS and anti-Semitism on college... Full story
The incidents at my alma mater, UCLA, in the past weeks have shaken us all. As a Bruin, to hear that members of the student government were considering not electing a perfectly competent student to a position because she was Jewish is astounding and frightening. As a Jew and a Hillel supporter (having been the product of the leadership education, social and cultural and religious programming provided by Hillel organizations around the world) the accusations and inanity felt way too close to home for comfort. When fellow Kveller contributor... Full story
Dear Bibi, I apologize for not calling you immediately after the election returns showed that you and the Likkud Party came in first place. Israel is, as I’ve often said, an important and long-time alley and the only true Democracy in the Middle-East, so I should not have listened to Valerie and I should have called you earlier. Mazel Tov! The people of Israel have spoken and, of course, we must and will support in the strongest way possible their decision. You and I have not had the best relationship these past six years. I’m sure that you... Full story
You say ISIL I say ISIS... There’s only one thing I can say I believe about ISIL, but before I do, listen to the litany of their accomplishments. They have captured land in two dysfunctional countries by force, murdering thousands of locals along the way. They have beheaded innocent foreigners from a wide range of countries—reporters, good Samaritans and health care workers. They have destroyed ancient artifacts and irreplaceable historical monuments. They have disseminated a video of a chi... Full story
The latest news for those dreaming of a Palestinian state is the refusal of the United List, a group of four largely Arab parties, to sign an agreement with Meretz to provide to one of them the excess votes left over to each after the parceling out via Israel’s system of Proportional Representation. This would have been a standard technical agreement, common between parties close to one another on the political spectrum, to assure that their cluster does not lose any votes to the mechanics of dividing votes for the 120 Knesset seats. The U... Full story
I probably shouldn’t admit this, given that my political views are fairly well-known, but one of my favorite songs is “I’m So Bored With the USA,” by British punk legends The Clash. “Yankee dollar talk to the dictators of the world,” spits vocalist Joe Strummer in the song’s opening verse. “In fact it’s giving orders, an’ they can’t afford to miss a word!” Oh how times have changed since “I’m So Bored” was released in 1977! The images of steely jawed, stone-hearted CIA officers conjured up by the song seem hopelessly dated. In today’s... Full story
It felt like hitting the jackpot. After attending 10 AIPAC Policy Conferences over the past dozen years, I experienced three immensely rewarding moments in Washington earlier this month: 1. Being in attendance during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress, 2. Functioning as group leader in lobbying two of our congressmen and 3. Joining the largest Orlando-area delegation in history. A remarkable 68 members strong, Central Florida was represented by an amazing cross-section of people: doctors, lawyers, homemakers, business leade... Full story
In an op-ed headlined “The Two Israels” (New York Times, March 1, 2015), Nicholas Kristof made a rather broad accusation stating that Jewish National Fund (JNF) plants forests on land owned by Bedouin Arabs. Unfortunately, Mr. Kristof chose to subscribe to the Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement’s diatribe against Israel and used JNF as a straw man to do so. We take exception to such reporting, and let the Times know just that in a letter to the editor Red flags should be raised when considering the fact that no Israeli gover... Full story
Favel (Philip) Blonder was a close friend of my Saba (Abe Engelstein, a”h). They both grew up in the town later called Auschwitz and spent their teenage years struggling for survival every day in the camps. Favel had remarkable physical strength; he walked miles around my town when he visited, could beat us all at hand-wrestling, and seemed unbreakable. Just like my Saba though, he had one of the most giving hearts and the tightest hugs that made you melt. Favel was set to turn 90 this spring. Truly one of the youngest and most spirited 90-year... Full story
By Stephen M. Flatow JNS.org “There was nothing new in it.” With those six words, President Barack Obama tried to dismiss the significance of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s address to Congress on March 3. But there was, in fact, something very new and very important in the speech—something that Mr. Obama understandably wants to keep out of the spotlight. The forgotten issue in the negotiations with Iran is now back, front and center, thanks to the Israeli prime minister: Iran’s role as—in Netanyahu’s words—“the foremost sponsor of global... Full story
I have to confess that I was disappointed with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s speech at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) policy conference this year. I felt that it was bland, packed with tired talking points, lacking in strategic direction, and generally uninspiring. Not so with Netanyahu’s speech to Congress the following day, which was a barnstormer. In its immediate aftermath, there were the standard idiocies in response, but that was to be expected. One that caught my eye was the utterance of CNN’s Glori... Full story
Bibi remains the leading choice to be prime minister, even though Likud has been losing ground. Buji is below Bibi in polls asking preferences for prime minister, but Labor/Zionist Union has moved one or two seats ahead. However, its obvious partners are still below the obvious partners of Likud. Washington is the big question mark, that may put Likud into the lead and assure another Netanyahu government, or leave a complex outcome to the president’s choice of who gets the first chance to form a government. A video has gone viral with Diane Fei... Full story
NEW YORK (JTA)—The latest strategy being used by those who make a career of assaulting the good name of the State of Israel is to link the issue of full equality for African-Americans, as symbolized by the word “Ferguson,” with the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. There is a long history of using legitimate American social justice issues to undermine the Jewish state. We saw it during the Vietnam War, where small contingents linked opposition to the war to opposition to Israel. We saw it in protests against the war in Iraq, which some linke... Full story
WASHINGTON (Washington Jewish Week via JTA)—Don’t make the enemy of your enemy your friend. That’s the message some lawmakers hope to convey to the Obama administration as they consider its request for a war authorization to combat ISIS. Concerns about how best to shape such an authorization without empowering Iran -- a concern shared by Israel—are emerging as a factor as lawmakers consider Obama’s request for what is known formally as an Authorization for Use of Military Force, in this case against the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or... Full story
Who misled President Obama into his losing showdown over Prime Minister Netanyahu’s blockbuster speech to Congress? And how much of this week’s setback to the president should be blamed on the “progressive” Israel lobbying group J Street? When J Street was established, its leaders chose a football metaphor to describe their purpose: they said they would serve as “President Obama’s blocking back.” In other words, they would charge into the defensive line, pushing aside critics so that Obama would be able to dictate terms to Israel. But a... Full story
Love, as the song goes, is in the air. If the latest media reports are accurate, the United States and the Iranian regime are rapidly closing in on a deal over the mullahs’ nuclear ambitions. Admittedly, the source of this nugget of hope was Joseph Cirincione—a former Capitol Hill operative who now serves as the president of the Ploughshares Fund, a liberal foreign policy think tank, having gotten there via the Center for American Progress, another think tank that serves as a reliable echo chamber for the Obama administration’s edicts, both... Full story
Freedom of speech. What is it worth? Without it we can lose everything including our lives. Imagine what life would be like if radical Islam eliminates free speech. You will not be able to express your opinion. According to Wikipeda the Pakistan Penal Code (295 and 298) prohibits blasphemy against any recognized religion. This includes defaming the Muslims’ prophet Muhammad. The penalty ranges from a fine to death. Danish Palestinian poet, Vahya Hassan, said, “Muslims love to take advantage of free speech. As soon as there is someone say... Full story
Barack Obama is not a Muslim, but he shows signs of a Wannabe. He emphasizes his middle name and his father’s origins when talking to Muslim audiences. That’s not a sin, but an effort to establish identity. He’d be a lousy politician if he didn’t play that game. However, he also contributes to the delusion of himself, and others with his frequent assertion that the war against terror is not about Islam. He says, “They are not religious leaders; they are terrorists.” No doubt that they are terrorists, but they are also religious leaders, ca... Full story
Alisa Robbins Doctoroff, president of the UJA-Federation of New York, the largest local philanthropy in the world leads an organization whose mission is to “care for people in need, inspire a passion for Jewish life and learning, and strengthen Jewish communities in New York, in Israel, and around the world.” She was appointed to this position on July 1, 2013—and until today no one has researched her background. Unfortunately for her, that time is over. Research reveals that Doctoroff is a donor to New Israel Fund (NIF) as revealed in their ann... Full story
Why did I go to Washington? Because, as prime minister of Israel, it’s my obligation to do everything in my power to prevent the conclusion of a bad deal that could threaten the survival of the State of Israel. The current proposal to Iran would endanger Israel. It would enable Iran to build its first nuclear device within an unacceptably short time. And it would allow Iran to build an industrial capability to enrich uranium that could provide the fuel for many bombs in the coming years. A regime that openly calls for Israel’s destruction wou... Full story
Dear Editor: I found the recent interview with Mr. Hassan Shibly in the Orlando Sentinel dated Feb. 11, 2015, to be quite enlightening and informative. I was interested in what Mr. Shibly had to say. However, I was much more interested in what Mr. Shibly didn’t say. For instance, Mr. Shibly forgot to disclose the relationship between the organization he represents, Council on American-Islamic Relations, and The Muslim Brotherhood. It is well known that CAIR is a subsidiary of The Muslim Brotherhood that has been considered a terrorist o... Full story
Some years ago, just as social media began to explode in popularity, a sensitive young man living in New York City had a decision to make. Every day he was bombarded by people’s acts of unkindness. He witnessed pregnant women standing on the subway, and no one offering them a seat. He saw the elderly rudely jostled as they tried to cross busy streets. He watched men shout out disgusting profanities as young women walked by. He picked up after people who dropped their garbage beside garbage c... Full story
