In his Christmas message, Archbishop Vincent Nichols sees fit to criticize Israel for constructing a security barrier in the West Bank to protect Jews against terrorist attacks. No mind that dozens of Egyptian Coptic Christians are still warm in their graves after being killed by Islamists. That warrants no mention. No matter that dozens of Nigerian Christians have been killed by Islamists on the very Christmas Day when the good Archbishop’s speech was being delivered – while they were peacefully celebrating their Holy Day in their Churches. That is of no consequence to the Archbishop.
No, that does not warrant any mention. The criticism of a civilized democracy like Israel for trying to protect its own citizens from precisely that sort of Islamic terror carries no dangers for the Archbishop and his flocks. And he knows that this type of moral cowardice is a no-lose stance. One would have thought that the ethnic cleansing by the Palestinian National Authority of Christians from the once majority Christian town of Bethlehem – the focus of today’s ceremonies and whose population constituted 60% in 1990 to less than 15% today! – would have given pause for thought, especially when compared with the exponential growth of the Christian population within Israel.
No, for the good Archbishop the only game in town is criticism of Israel, the one state in the region where Christians do have full protection and equality.
But he is mistaken if he feels that this approach will curry favour with the Islamists, and will help to remove Christians in the Arab lands from danger, especially after the Arab Spring returns even more Islamists to power. No, Archbishop. You are considered a Dhimmi, an inferior person in Islam, and they expect this sort of subservience from you, as they expect you in trembling to distance yourself from anyone they consider willing to stand up to them.
In his Christmas message, the Pope too made no mention of the murder of Christians around the Islamic world, only “even-handedly” praying for a resumption of Israeli-Palestinian peace talks – as if that would do anything to alleviate the situation of Christians across the Arab world.
Until the Roman Catholic Church realises that the only steadfast ally they have in the region is the Jewish state, I fear that Christians will continue to be murdered in their hundreds around the Middle East, while the the Church leaders glibly condemn Israel.
Sunday, 25 December 2011
Sunday, 31 July 2011
After the Arab Spring, now the Israeli summer...
Anyone watching the series of uprisings in the Middle East could only surmise that it was just a matter of time before the Israelis rose up in revolt against the oppressive regime that rules them. We marvel as the Libyan ruler Gaddafi mows down his subjects by the hundred, standing up bravely against the combined superpower forces of NATO. And the Syrian leader Assad attacks the city of Hama, where due to his restraint the death toll in the current campaign is only in the hundreds and has yet to reach the glorious total - reputedly 40,000 dead - achieved by his father in the same town in 1982. No, the Israelis have surely more reason to protest than their Arab neighbours.
Inspired by earlier protests in Israel against the price of cottage cheese, the oppressed proletariat have massed in their dozens in the main towns. And do not mock at cottage cheese; I myself am partial to the odd dollop on my breakfast crispbread. This, I consider, is one of the basic Human Rights, hitherto ignored by the United Nations (but not now by the British media). Any government which permits the price of cottage cheese to rise above a level which allows it to be purchased by the most impoverished citizen is surely guilty of - at the very least - a Crime Against Humanity. Count me among the protesters; today, I am with you - Israeli Cottage Cheese Protesters. We in the West owe it to the downtrodden cottage-cheese-less masses in Israel to mount flotillas, filled with cottage cheese, if that vile regime will allow them to approach their shores.
And it is not only cottage cheese - although that is bad enough. After having spent 6 weeks in a luxury three-bedroom apartment in Tel Aviv, I was disgusted to learn that there are even more luxurious 6-10 bedroom apartments being built in the plusher quarters of that city. Ten bedrooms! Why should any capitalist - with the requisite capital - be able to afford such a flat in Rothschild Boulevard (now that's an appropriate name) and not me? I am with you, Oh Israeli protesters, Luxury Flats for Everybody! is our slogan.
And what about the cost of raising children - another of the issues being raised? I assure you, anyone with kids will tell you that this is no laughing matter. Especially, with Jewish children who adamantly refuse to leave the parental home until they are themselves married with children. We demand free creches and kindergartens for all in Israel. (Oh, they do have State Kindergartens in Israel already? Well surely not enough. And so what if in the UK we don't have any; since when do we judge Israel by our standards?)
And it was only to be expected that violence would be exhibited by the police of that illegitimate entity. The Guardian published a photograph of a police officer discreetly standing behind an activist. It is highly possible that the activist had been ticked off really harshly by that policeman.
So stand by our Israeli protesters: Proletariat of the world unite! we have nothing to lose but our cottage cheese.
Friday, 15 July 2011
Our Two Minutes' Hate
I am exhausted, yet peculiarly refreshed. I have just finished my daily Two Minutes' Hate.
In George Orwell's novel, Nineteen Eighty-Four, the Two Minutes' Hate is a daily period in which Party members of the society of Oceania must watch a film depicting The Party's enemies (notably Emmanuel Goldstein and his followers) and express their hatred for them and their principles of democracy.
At last we have a demonic Goldstein figure, the embattled press baron (the adjectives and nouns are de rigeur) Rupert Murdoch . The media, TV , radio, newspapers have non-stop devoted every loving minute to expressing venom for this eater of babies, this cannibal, this mass murderer, this.. I am lost for words.
No matter that the United Kingdom is descending into economic misery, that our armed forces build aircraft carriers with no aircraft to carry, that our Parliament has been shown to be a den of corrupt expenses cheats. No matter that the Eastern Mediterranean is aflame with revolutions in Tunisia and Libya , as well as Egypt and elsewhere in North Africa and the Middle East; that a thousand have been murdered in Syria, that the Sudan is approaching ominously to a war after partition,..we can forget all of this.
We have at last a focus for our frustrations, our hatred; poor Rupert.
Don't worry, Rupert. If it wasn't you it would be someone else. We need you; and in serving as an outlet for the outpouring of our venom, you provide a greater service to our great nation than your newspapers ever did.
Tuesday, 12 July 2011
Green Jews
The other day we were invited round to lunch by a Jewish couple who had recently moved to our neighbourhood. As it was a lovely day, one of those rare English summer days when you have to take advantage of every minute of sunshine, we spent some time in their garden. My wife and I could only gaze in awe and wonderment at the sight. Lush greenery, exotic flowers and plants, bushes and trees, reminiscent of the Brazilian rain forest, or possibly more accurately of the tamed naturalness of a Capability Brown. Not, I thought unkindly, your typical Jewish garden. The hostess - the gardener in question - kindly offered us some cuttings.. "Cuttings, noch", I thought, echoing the Manchester writer Howard Jacobson's Yiddish self putdown.
And yet, and yet. The Jews' ancient history depicts them as agriculturists extraordinaire, well ahead of their time with respect to ecological questions. The Torah itself is strong on sustainable agriculture, ordaining every seventh year (Shmitah year) as an annual rest for the land. The Roman historian Publius Cornelius Tacitus, writing around 100 C.E., rather scathingly refers to this practise among the Jews as due to their love of indolence[1]! He otherwise notes the fertility and cultivation of the soil; as does the Romano-Jewish historian Titus Flavius Josephus, who wrote in 75 C.E., referring to the Jews of the Galilee, “their soil is universally rich and fruitful, and full of the plantations of trees of all sorts, insomuch that it invites the most slothful to take pains in its cultivation, by its fruitfulness; accordingly, it is all cultivated by its inhabitants, and no part of it lies idle.“ and of Samaria, “They have abundance of trees, and are full of autumnal fruit, both that which grows wild, and that which is the effect of cultivation"[2].
Perhaps the destruction of Jerusalem and the subsequent dispersal, depriving Jews of their own country, and involving centuries of persecution and moving from one temporary host country to another, militated against the traditional Jewish love of land and cultivation.
But the more recent history of the Jews shows that since their return to their homeland they have once again become world leaders in cultivation and fruit and vegetable production. Due to the ever-present problem of water resources, agriculture has become a less important element of the GDP, but now Israel is discovering innovative techniques for growing more produce with less water[3].
And continuing the ancient Jewish ecological tradition.
[1] Tacitus, The Histories, Volume V, 5.4.
[2] Flavius Josephus: The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem, Chapter 3.2 and 3.4.
[3] See the excellent Wikipedia article , Agriculture in Israel.
And yet, and yet. The Jews' ancient history depicts them as agriculturists extraordinaire, well ahead of their time with respect to ecological questions. The Torah itself is strong on sustainable agriculture, ordaining every seventh year (Shmitah year) as an annual rest for the land. The Roman historian Publius Cornelius Tacitus, writing around 100 C.E., rather scathingly refers to this practise among the Jews as due to their love of indolence[1]! He otherwise notes the fertility and cultivation of the soil; as does the Romano-Jewish historian Titus Flavius Josephus, who wrote in 75 C.E., referring to the Jews of the Galilee, “their soil is universally rich and fruitful, and full of the plantations of trees of all sorts, insomuch that it invites the most slothful to take pains in its cultivation, by its fruitfulness; accordingly, it is all cultivated by its inhabitants, and no part of it lies idle.“ and of Samaria, “They have abundance of trees, and are full of autumnal fruit, both that which grows wild, and that which is the effect of cultivation"[2].
Perhaps the destruction of Jerusalem and the subsequent dispersal, depriving Jews of their own country, and involving centuries of persecution and moving from one temporary host country to another, militated against the traditional Jewish love of land and cultivation.
But the more recent history of the Jews shows that since their return to their homeland they have once again become world leaders in cultivation and fruit and vegetable production. Due to the ever-present problem of water resources, agriculture has become a less important element of the GDP, but now Israel is discovering innovative techniques for growing more produce with less water[3].
And continuing the ancient Jewish ecological tradition.
[1] Tacitus, The Histories, Volume V, 5.4.
[2] Flavius Josephus: The Wars of the Jews or History of the Destruction of Jerusalem, Chapter 3.2 and 3.4.
[3] See the excellent Wikipedia article , Agriculture in Israel.
Saturday, 2 July 2011
The midnight knock comes to West Dumbartonshire
24 May 2011: West Dumbartonshire , Scotland, County Council has enacted a law banning books printed or published in Israel.
Heinrich Heine "Where they burn books, so too will they in the end burn human beings." ("Dort, wo man Bücher verbrennt, verbrennt man auch am Ende Menschen.")
___________________
Picture a small cottage in West Dumbartonshire, some time in the summer of 2011. It is midnight and there is a fierce knocking on the door. Sarah, fearfully, in her dressing gown, peers through the window.
“Who is it?”
“Nothing to worry about , Madam, just a mere formal enquiry.”
She opens the door to the two policemen standing outside.
“Madam, I am Sergeant McTaggart and this is my assistant, Hamish McGivern. Would I be correct in assuming that this is a Jewish household?”
“Well, ...” Sarah is hesitant.
“No worries, Madam, but we have information that leads us to believe that you may be in possession of illegal material.”
“Illegal material? There is nothing of that nature here.” Sarah is nonplussed.
“Well, Madam, we have reason to believe that there may be Jewish books, or, more specifically books published in “ – here the Sergeant steels himself to pronounce the word –“Israel, in your possession. No? Perhaps a Hebrew Bible, or...whatever.” McTaggart is clearly not totally familiar with what is, after all, a new area of police enquiry.
“Well, we do have an old family bible from my grandparents, but we’re really not very Jewish...”
“No problem, Madame. Could we possibly have a look at this, er, family bible?”
“Certainly, sergeant”.
Sarah rummages in a cupboard, and comes up with a large dog-eared volume.
“Thank you, Madame.” McTaggart thumbs through the volume, initially in the wrong sense, and then happens on the flyleaf.
“I see that this book was published in Jerusalem. Would that be West Jerusalem or East Jerusalem, Madame?” McTaggart has clearly been through the police Forbidden Book Section’s orientation course.
Sarah is at a loss here. “We’re not all that Jewish, you know. I got it from my grandparents and...” Her voice drops off.
“I’m sorry, Madame, but we shall have to impound this volume. If it is found to contravene the Illegal Material (Books) Statute24052011 we shall, I very much regret, have to dispose of it in the specified manner. Now – do you have anything else you would like to show me. Let me advise you that you are already in contravention of the Statute and may be faced with serious penalties if you are found to be concealing any further illegal material. “
Sarah is now trembling nervously. “I’m sorry, I really didn’t know...”
“Madame, ignorance of the law is not a defence. Please, I insist, show me any other material of this nature that you have, otherwise Hamish here will return very shortly with a search warrant, and I can assure you that we will not miss anything.”
Sarah begins to weep. “My late father left an old Hebrew prayer book...I’ll get it from the loft.”
She returns and hands a rather dusty book to McTaggart, who looks at the latest find.
“Hmmm. I see that this was published in London, so it may be OK. But, just to be sure, we will take it along in any case. You don’t want any more trouble, Madame, do you?”
The policemen make to leave, when McTaggart spots a metal cylinder attached to the doorpost.
“Would this be what is termed a Mezzuzah, Madame?” He has really been an apt pupil at the banned books section training course.
Sarah looks through her tears. “I don’t really know. When my parents passed on they left me the house, and I didn’t want to remove it – I thought it was a good luck charm or something..”.
“That’s as may be – but as like as not this contains material which was made in - again McTaggart’s voice trembles slightly before pronouncing the accursed word – Israel. We shall have to take this away. Hamish, get the crowbar. Sorry we inconvenienced you, Madame, but really, I am afraid that you should have known better than to retain such material in your possession. I hope the magistrate will take a lenient view as this is probably a first offence. Good evening.”
And with that the policemen were gone.
But that is only the beginning......
Heinrich Heine "Where they burn books, so too will they in the end burn human beings." ("Dort, wo man Bücher verbrennt, verbrennt man auch am Ende Menschen.")
___________________
Picture a small cottage in West Dumbartonshire, some time in the summer of 2011. It is midnight and there is a fierce knocking on the door. Sarah, fearfully, in her dressing gown, peers through the window.
“Who is it?”
“Nothing to worry about , Madam, just a mere formal enquiry.”
She opens the door to the two policemen standing outside.
“Madam, I am Sergeant McTaggart and this is my assistant, Hamish McGivern. Would I be correct in assuming that this is a Jewish household?”
“Well, ...” Sarah is hesitant.
“No worries, Madam, but we have information that leads us to believe that you may be in possession of illegal material.”
“Illegal material? There is nothing of that nature here.” Sarah is nonplussed.
“Well, Madam, we have reason to believe that there may be Jewish books, or, more specifically books published in “ – here the Sergeant steels himself to pronounce the word –“Israel, in your possession. No? Perhaps a Hebrew Bible, or...whatever.” McTaggart is clearly not totally familiar with what is, after all, a new area of police enquiry.
“Well, we do have an old family bible from my grandparents, but we’re really not very Jewish...”
“No problem, Madame. Could we possibly have a look at this, er, family bible?”
“Certainly, sergeant”.
Sarah rummages in a cupboard, and comes up with a large dog-eared volume.
“Thank you, Madame.” McTaggart thumbs through the volume, initially in the wrong sense, and then happens on the flyleaf.
“I see that this book was published in Jerusalem. Would that be West Jerusalem or East Jerusalem, Madame?” McTaggart has clearly been through the police Forbidden Book Section’s orientation course.
Sarah is at a loss here. “We’re not all that Jewish, you know. I got it from my grandparents and...” Her voice drops off.
“I’m sorry, Madame, but we shall have to impound this volume. If it is found to contravene the Illegal Material (Books) Statute24052011 we shall, I very much regret, have to dispose of it in the specified manner. Now – do you have anything else you would like to show me. Let me advise you that you are already in contravention of the Statute and may be faced with serious penalties if you are found to be concealing any further illegal material. “
Sarah is now trembling nervously. “I’m sorry, I really didn’t know...”
“Madame, ignorance of the law is not a defence. Please, I insist, show me any other material of this nature that you have, otherwise Hamish here will return very shortly with a search warrant, and I can assure you that we will not miss anything.”
Sarah begins to weep. “My late father left an old Hebrew prayer book...I’ll get it from the loft.”
She returns and hands a rather dusty book to McTaggart, who looks at the latest find.
“Hmmm. I see that this was published in London, so it may be OK. But, just to be sure, we will take it along in any case. You don’t want any more trouble, Madame, do you?”
The policemen make to leave, when McTaggart spots a metal cylinder attached to the doorpost.
“Would this be what is termed a Mezzuzah, Madame?” He has really been an apt pupil at the banned books section training course.
Sarah looks through her tears. “I don’t really know. When my parents passed on they left me the house, and I didn’t want to remove it – I thought it was a good luck charm or something..”.
“That’s as may be – but as like as not this contains material which was made in - again McTaggart’s voice trembles slightly before pronouncing the accursed word – Israel. We shall have to take this away. Hamish, get the crowbar. Sorry we inconvenienced you, Madame, but really, I am afraid that you should have known better than to retain such material in your possession. I hope the magistrate will take a lenient view as this is probably a first offence. Good evening.”
And with that the policemen were gone.
But that is only the beginning......
Monday, 4 April 2011
Geneva International Jewish Film Festival 2011
I attended the first Geneva International Jewish Film Festival last week (23-27 March 2011). Based on the UK equivalent, founded by Judy Ironside, the selection of films was of an internationally high standard and in most instances the director or key actor was present to engage with the audience in discussion. Particularly moving was Inside Hanna’s Suitcase, the story of the journey of the curator of a small Holocaust education centre in Japan to discover the story of a suitcase left from the mass murder. Director Larry Weinstein enthralled an audience of schoolchildren who participated in a vigorous question-and-answer session after the showing. Also notable was the award-winning Czech film Protektor, set in German-occupied Prague of the Thirties. I had the good fortune to interview Jana Plodkova, whose performance as the Jewish wife of a radio presenter won her Best Actress in the Czech Film Academy Awards.
Another notable film was Precious Life, which tells the true story of the an Israeli doctor’s fight to save the life of Mohammed Abu Mustafa, a four-month-old Palestinian infant from Gaza who suffers from a genetic disorder in his immune system. This film was short-listed in the 83rd Academy Awards for Best Documentary. The doctor, Dr. Raz Somech, was present to answer questions.
Finally, an excellent film The Matchmaker directed by Israeli Avi Nesher, who was also present to answer questions about his film, ended an excellent filmic feast.
There were 17 films in all, of which I managed to get to see13! For a full listing of the films see the festival Homepage.
The Festival was a total sell-out, which augurs well for future events in what promises to be an annual series.
Monday, 14 March 2011
At last – a great victory for Arab heroes
The protracted military operations in Libya, with neither side yet achieving ultimate victory in spite of the great material superiority of the pro-Gaddafi forces, have proved somewhat of an embarrassment to the reputation of Arab fighting prowess. But one recent success at least has shown what the Arab fighting machine is still capable of.
On Saturday night 12th March 2011, while they slept in their beds, five members of an Israeli family were killed; the parents , two boys, one aged eleven and a toddler of three and, greatest success of all, a three-month old baby who had her throat slashed. It really takes some courage to cut the throat of a three-month-old but, as she was sleeping at the time, this was probably not beyond the ability of a well-trained Arab militant.
It is not often that our Arab friends can claim a great heroic victory, but this event showed what they are really capable of when they try. Celebrations resounded throughout Gaza, with celebratory sweets being handed out. Doubtless this epic feat will be commemorated by the naming of squares and football teams, the striking of medals, and long-lasting adulation throughout the Arab world.
Israeli babies – tremble in your cots. You have met your match!
On Saturday night 12th March 2011, while they slept in their beds, five members of an Israeli family were killed; the parents , two boys, one aged eleven and a toddler of three and, greatest success of all, a three-month old baby who had her throat slashed. It really takes some courage to cut the throat of a three-month-old but, as she was sleeping at the time, this was probably not beyond the ability of a well-trained Arab militant.
It is not often that our Arab friends can claim a great heroic victory, but this event showed what they are really capable of when they try. Celebrations resounded throughout Gaza, with celebratory sweets being handed out. Doubtless this epic feat will be commemorated by the naming of squares and football teams, the striking of medals, and long-lasting adulation throughout the Arab world.
Israeli babies – tremble in your cots. You have met your match!
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