Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Central Florida's Independent Jewish Voice
Sorted by date Results 3210 - 3234 of 3706
Wednesday morning we woke to our neighborhood in the headlines. My inbox included two notes from overseas inquiring about our safety. “Activists” (“terrorists” is on the other edge of the politically correct; “thieves’ or “vandals” may be correct in this instance) from Isaweea torched the French Hill gas station and looted its store. The station manager and employees are Arabs, and they will suffer at least a temporary loss of work. Likewise the Palestinians who work in Jewish industries that the worthies of the world boycott on account of inju... Full story
When I asked Rabbi Andy Bachman what he plans to speak about in his sermons during this, his last, Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur services as senior rabbi of Congregation Beth Elohim, I thought he would bring up the importance of closing the gap between the wealthy and the needy in this country. After all, the 51-year-old rabbi built a reputation at the Park Slope, Brooklyn synagogue as a strong voice for progressive Judaism, giving secular Jews a sense of meaning through social justice and communal causes beyond ancient rituals and prayers.... Full story
As we mark the end of another year with the advent of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, we pause to take stock of the year that has passed, to learn from ourselves, our experiences and our mistakes as we move forward to build a better future. This has been a most difficult year for the Jewish people and particularly for the state of Israel, which once again has fended off a threat on its southern border from an implacable foe, the terrorist group Hamas. As the year concludes there is little hope that the most recent war will lead to any... Full story
Anti-Semitism is rising at an alarming rate across the United States, especially on college campuses. A group such as Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) is not interested in engaging in civil conversations with pro-Israel students. They would rather harass supporters of Israel, shout anti-Semitic insults, and turn to violence—as witnessed recently at Temple University—to spread their desire to “free” Palestinians from the “open-air prison” they supposedly live in. This type of student-run organization thrives upon media manipulatio... Full story
NEW YORK (Kveller.com)—Have you heard the one about the young Jewish couple who have a kid while living in a big city and find themselves searching for community around the High Holidays? You know, the couple who decide to pony up for synagogue membership at a large congregation in their city neighborhood and then subsequently become involved through the synagogue preschool, the young sisterhood and various holiday events? This couple basks in the warm glow of baking challah and attending Tot Shabbat services. They introduce their k... Full story
Ask a foreigner to name a British parliamentarian. Assuming they are able to provide an answer, there’s a high chance, especially if that person is a Jew or a Muslim, that the name on their lips will be that of George Galloway. The 60-year-old Galloway has been a fixture of the British House of Commons since 1987. In that time, he has represented a variety of constituencies, beginning in the Scottish city of Glasgow and currently representing a section of Bradford, a heavily Muslim city in the north of England. He has also represented two diffe... Full story
The key question—both legally and morally—in evaluating Israel’s recent military actions is whether the Israeli government was justified in ordering ground troops into Gaza to destroy the Hamas tunnels. This question is important because most of the deaths—among Palestinian civilians, Hamas terrorists and Israeli soldiers—came about after Israeli ground troops attacked the tunnels. These tunnels went deep underground from Gaza to Israel and were designed to allow Hamas death squads to cross into Israel and to kill and kidnap Israeli citizens.... Full story
Policymakers aspire to clarity. It is easiest to define and defend one’s actions according to fixed lines. Government benefits should go to individuals who meet certain criteria. Giving discretion to the people who carry out policy is problematic. It facilitates favoritism and brings charges of discrimination. Yet some issues do not lend themselves to clear lines, and some of those who implement policy should have discretion. Physicians make some decisions according to widely accepted criteria, but are entitled to use the judgment they have bee... Full story
The definition of peace between the Palestinians and Israelis is when the two can work alongside each other, earning equal wages, benefits, and economically energizing their neighborhoods, in a ‘so called’ peaceful environment. Peace broke out in Maale Adumim, West Bank at the SodaStream factory 15 minutes west of Jerusalem. 600 West Bank Palestinians, 300 East Jerusalem Arabs, and 300 Israeli Jews entered, without knowing, into a voluntary peace deal at SodaStream. All this achieved without outside interference from the United Nations, Uni... Full story
Last Friday, Rabbi Shmuley Boteach began an advertising campaign to defend the State of Israel by arguing that Hamas and ISIS are equally vile. According to his press release, “The ad equates ISIS and its execution of American journalist James Foley and Hamas’ actions in Gaza.” Not only is the opinion of “America’s Rabbi” wrong, it is dangerous. Let me be clear: I believe Hamas is an existential danger to the State of Israel, and I denounce that bellicose terrorist regime vigorously. I was a strong supporter of our recent efforts in Gaza, wh... Full story
On Aug. 30, Palestinian terrorists set a Jewish man on fire in Jerusalem, and on Sept. 1, other Palestinian terrorists tried to set an entire bus full of Israeli Jews on fire. Yet I couldn’t find any mention of these horrific attacks in the New York Times, the Washington Post, or any other major American news outlet. Why is it that news about burning Jews is not considered fit to print? The first of the firebomb attacks took place in Jerusalem’s City of David neighborhood. A Molotov cocktail—a flaming bottle of gasoline that explodes upon conta... Full story
Prominent supporters of both Israel and the Palestinian cause are now saying that the solution to the current Gaza conflict is for the Palestinian Authority to be handed control there in place of Hamas. Such thinking fails to account for the PA’s long history of sheltering, assisting, and even collaborating with Hamas and other terrorist groups. Writing on the op-ed page of the Washington Post on Aug. 21, former national security advisers Samuel (“Sandy”) Berger (who served under Bill Clinton) and Stephen Hadley (under George W. Bush) argue... Full story
The Israeli public is unhappy with how the Gaza operation has ended. “Ended” is, of course, problematic, as is the expectation for a month-long cease fire. The prime minister, defense minister, and head of the IDF held a joint press conference, in which they defended themselves against those claiming that the war ought to have continued to a more complete victory. Netanyahu’s line is that the complete defeat of a terrorist organization is not easy. He didn’t say “impossible,” but something near that was apparent. Israelis argue as to whether... Full story
A grand paradox exists within Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP). The group markets itself as a movement to “restore the self-determination of Palestinians” while simultaneously denying the self-determination of Jews. Operating under the premise that the Jewish state is “illegally occupying Palestine,” SJP tries to spread awareness of the hardships faced by Palestinian-Arabs claiming that Israel treats them unfairly compared to Jewish citizens. By showing images of the security fence that was built out of necessity—to limit the number of... Full story
Jewish Voice for Peace (JVP), the group that recently invaded and “occupied” the Philadelphia Jewish Community Services Building and on Aug. 20 simulated and protested the (legal) blockade of Gaza outside of the UJA-Federation of New York, has declared in northern California, “Zionism isn’t welcome in our town.” There, JVP joined with a radical Bay Area coalition on Aug. 16 seeking to prevent the unloading of Israeli goods in Oakland. The action’s announcement, proclaiming “Stand Against Zionism Everywhere,” extols the “resistance in... Full story
With the collapse of peace negotiations in Cairo on Aug. 19, Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip resumed rocket attacks on the state of Israel. Many believed that Operation Protective Edge—rightfully launched by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on July 8—wouldn’t be over anytime soon. However, on Aug. 26, Israel and Hamas accepted an Egyptian-brokered, open-ended cease-fire; this is the twelfth time in fifty days that Israel has agreed to another cease-fire attempt with this recognized terrorist organization. According to The Jerus... Full story
Strolling through Jerusalem’s historic Yemin Moshe quarter on a pleasant August morning, my ears caught a ringing, melodic sound emanating from within the walls of the Old City, perhaps half a mile from where I stood. This being a Sunday, the sound I heard was the chiming of church bells, welcoming Christian worshippers to morning services. Normally, there is something joyous about the sound of those bells, particularly in a city that contains the key holy sites of Judaism, Christianity and Islam. But on this day, I felt a profound sadness u... Full story
Hamas won this one. The universal condemnation of Israel in almost every newspaper in the world; the thousands of people taking to the streets of major cities to protest the “senseless” killing of innocent civilians has made great fodder for the 24-hour news cycle. Truth? Who cares about truth? Who cares to take the time to dissect the causes and the actual events on the ground? Blood and crying and mass destruction makes for great video. When people ask where is the video from Israel? Who wants to watch as the Iron Dome saved hundreds, may... Full story
We’re at a junction, as complex as any where two or three major highways come together, with too many signs to be anything other than confusing. On Tuesday we were still in a limping forward cease fire, with confusing signals from Palestinians and Israelis about their willingness to accept the imperfect, along with threats about what could happen. Mahmoud Abbas has been maneuvering for a role in Gaza. He is the most prominent of Palestinians saying that the unity Palestine National Authority must accept what the the Egyptians have offered, a... Full story
Here are some preliminary take-aways from the 2014 Gaza War (which may not even be over yet): 1. Obama, not America, is an enemy of Israel, and an ally of Hamas. Did Winston Churchill ever call and warn Eva Braun to leave the Hitler’s Berlin Fuhrer Bunker before the allies tried to bomb it? The Gaza War has proved President Obama, not America, is an enemy of the State of Israel, and an unwavering ally of the Gaza Hamas-Terror-State. On June 11, 2014, the day before Hamas kidnapped and then brutally murdered the three Israeli teenage civilian b... Full story
Why is the world silent while Christians are being slaughtered in the Middle East and Africa? In Europe and in the United States, we have witnessed demonstrations over the tragic deaths of Palestinians who have been used as human shields by Hamas, the terrorist organization that controls Gaza. The United Nations has held inquiries and focuses its anger on Israel for defending itself against that same terrorist organization. But the barbarous slaughter of thousands upon thousands of Christians is met with relative indifference. The Middle East a... Full story
Dear Editor: The article by David Bornstein in the Heritage dated Aug. 15, is another example of someone trying to make sense of the “other side.” Since Judaism values life, the ten commandments, and our whole philosophy of trying to help people and improve the world, it is hard to fathom that there is a religion, Islam, that promotes honor killings, killings of Christians and Jews, and intimidation of all those in Islam who want to convert or all those who do not embrace Islam. The killing of Christians and Jews in nearly every Moslem cou... Full story
Dear Editor: Moving down to the lowest rung of our society are those who lost their job, are poor, homeless, wandering mentally ill, institutionalized and at the lowest level, those warehoused. The latter group is in so-called rehabilitation, nursing home or assisted living facilities. Fifty to 60 percent of the residents in those facilities have no relatives nearby, have outlived their relatives or friends, and consequentially have no advocates or visitors. From day to day all they see are staff uniforms. If they are very lucky, they get... Full story
I recently journeyed to Columbus Circle in Manhattan to savor the atmosphere at two rival demonstrations over Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. On one side, by the entrance to Central Park, and adjacent to the hot dog stands and “I Love NYC” souvenir outlets, I found about 60 or so pro-Israel demonstrators. The sky was gray and leaden, the humidity threatened a thunderstorm, and the news coming out of Israel was pretty bleak, but their mood veered in the joyous direction. They danced and sang, they recited prayers for the IDF’s fallen soldier... Full story
According to About.com the Islamic holy month of Ramadan is much more than just not eating and drinking. During this period Muslims are to re-evaluate their lives in light of Islamic guidance. They are to strengthen ties with family and friends, do away with bad habits—essentially to clean up their lives, their thoughts, and their feelings. The Arabic word for “fasting” (sawm) literally means “to refrain” not only refraining from food and drink, but from evil actions, thoughts, and words. During Ramadan, every part of the body must be restra... Full story
