Jack Abramoff was just convicted to 6 years in prison for fraud. When the story broke a little while back that he was under investigation and indicted, it made waves in the frum Jewish community. Everybody spoke about the great Chillul Hashem he caused. All the pictures of him going into and out of court showed him in a black hat (yeshiva style). People were upset that he is making us all look bad. He is giving the perception that it is ok to steal as long as he wears his black hat, etc...

In the latest news breaks, I noticed something interesting. In all the pictures I saw of Jack Abramoff after the sentencing, he was no longer wearing his black hat. This time around he was wearing a baseball cap. Did he change his hat on purpose, so as not to cause people to cast aspersions on people in black hats? So he would not look "frummer than thou"?

Did his community/Rabbi request of him to change his hat? I saw articles and emails that went out from members of his community asking people to write letters on his behalf to the judge, describing how helpful he is to the community and how family oriented he is, etc.. in order to sway the judge to lighten the sentence. Did they request of him in return to change is hat?

If any one good thing has come out of the elections, it is that Rafi Eitan from the Pensioners Party succeeded in getting in. Not only did he get in, he was given a lot of power. None of the analysts yet understand how he got so many votes, but he did, and that is good.

Rafi Eitan has a rich history as a member and commander in the Mossad. He led the team that captured Adolph Eichmann yimach shemo v'zichro, and brought him back to Israel for trial. In addition to that and many other secret events that we do not know about, he was involved in another, more public, operation. Rafi Eitan was Jonathan Pollard's handler.

I will not go into the story and background of Jonathan Pollard and his incarceration. Everybody knows that and has there opinions on whether he should rot in jail, as he has until now, as a traitor to his employer, the United States of America, or whether he has served more than a fair amount of "time" in jail for a crime he comitted, when other spies caught for worse things have served much less than JP.

I used to be of the opinion that it was a stain on Jewish - America relations and he should rot in jail for the crime he comitted. Over the past few years I have thought much about the Pollard case and have changed my opinion. JP has served more than his fair amount of time for the crime he comitted.

Rafi Eitan, while this was not his party's platform, has said that he has worked for Pollard's release and has regretted never doing more or having more influence and effecting his release. he has said that if he gets in to Knesset, he will use his position as a platform to secure JP's release from incarceration.

If that is the one good thing that comes of yesterday's elections, dayeinu. Get to work Mr. Eitan. Get Pollard out of jail.

It looks like the people have spoken. With an unprecedented low turnout of voters in the Israeli elections yesterday, those who did bother to go vote have had their say.

It looks more like people want a more social agenda than the free market with little government interference that we have had the past few years. People want more government assistance and influence on the economic sectors.

I would say that while Kadima has become the largets party in the crowded field, they were disappointed at the amount of seats they won. I think this is because their major platform was further disengagements. I think people are more interested in the economic issues and the social platform than they were in the future disengagements issue. That is why Labor did so well. That is why the Pensioners party pulled off the great surprising victory they did. An that is why the Likud crashed even harder than anybody expected.

What worried me now is not future disengagements. That might happen, but that is not what worries me. What really worries me is the achievements we have made in the past 3 years financially and economically will now be wiped out. With Labor pushing their agenda and the Pensioners pushing theirs, if they join the coalition and force Kadima to accept those positions, we might be turning the clock back three years. Bibi successfully revolutionized the economy and vastly improved the economic conditions Israel has been in for the past three years. I am worried we are headed back to the days of high unemployment and inflation.

Time will tell.

Go vote. I already did.

Bibi yesterday finished his pre-election campaigning with a stop at the Kotel for some davening. Sure, it was a campaign ploy to attract religious voters. Maybe. But he is the only one who did it. None of the other candidates began or completed their campaigning at the Kotel or other Jewish place or symbol. None of the others even made a stop in the middle of the campaign. I commend Bibi for showing the importance of Jewish heritage and symbolism at this juncture.

The Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz today appointed a new Chief Rabbi for the army. The new Rabbi is Rabbi Ronsky from the Yishuv of Itamar. While many on the left are condemning the appointment due to the location of his residence, I see this as a blessed opportunity.

How so? The yishuv of Itamar is located right next to Sh'chem. Sh'chem is a hotbed of terrorism. That being said, it is also the location of the kever of Yosef Hatzaddik. As we all know, during the intifada the Arabds destroyed the structure above kever Yosef and have burnt it numerous times. It is very difficult to get permission to go daven at the very special holy site, due to the great dangers involved. Whenever the army gives a group permission to go there, they must spend the day clearing the area of suspected terrorists and dealing with terror threats. This is done in coordination with the PA and, while difficult, can be accomplished. The vists to kever Yosef have gotten less and less frequent over time as the army has decided it is too dangerous.

With the appointment of Rabbi Ronsky as Chief Rabbi of the army, I see this as an opportunity for the army to renew the visits to Kever Yosef with the encouragement of the new Chief Rabbi.

I pray that we soon will get the opportunity to daven on the grave of Yosef Hatzaddik for the salvation of our forgotten and captive brothers held in foreign lands by foreign hands. I pray that our brethren in captivity will be released quickly, so we will not need to pray for them any longer, but until then at least we should be able to beseech Hashem with the zechus of Yosef Hatzaddik on behalf of our captive brothers.

Baruch Marzel wrote this article. We need people like him speaking from the Knesset podium.

I just received this picture. It is being used by Baruch Marzel's party in his posters and lfyers. It is a picture of Ehud Olmert's wife hanging out with her friend (Abu Tir) from Hamas. Mrs. Olmert is a well-known extreme left winger.
When you vote Kadima, be aware of with whom Ehud Olmert is getting into bed with every night and how she might be influencing his decisions.

Don't vote Kadima.

When Ariel Sharon was Prime Minister, Ehud Olmert frequently provided a special service to him. That is, Olmert would float some crazy idea into the press. The public would react how the public reacted. Shortly thereafter Sharon would implement such policy. I would guess that it generally depended on the public reaction. If he saw things favorably he would implement and I am sure there were some ideas he shelved. But it happened often that Ehud Olmert would first float the idea in the press.

Now it looks like Haim Ramon has taken over the job job of idea floater. Olmert today gave an interview in which he said it is premature to discuss timeframes for future pullouts and disengagements, and inappropriate before elections. Shortly after he said that, Haim Ramon gave an interview on the radio in which he said that a kadima led government would give Hamas/PA 6 to 12 months to get their act together and if by then there is no agreement and compliance, Kadima would effect the next disengagement.

Know what you are getting into if you vote Kadima. Do not think that Ramon is just a loose cannon making unauthorized statements. He is letting us know what Olmert is planning, in a roundabout way.

Don't vote Kadima.

A few random thoughts scribbled together in one jumbled post:

I just took a couple of taxis through Tel Aviv and noticed a few things. Here we go.

1. The signage (I might have made up the word) confuses me. In every major intersection there are large signs for all the large parties. What is the point? Why waste all that money? None of those are going to sway anybody to vote for the specific party. All the parties have signs next to each other, so they effectively cancel each other out. They do not indicate any level of public support, because it is simply a matter of who ran to the intersection first and grabbed the first available spot. What's the point?

2. I saw almost no signs hanging from porches and windows. That means that people really do not care. I have been in Israel long enough that I have experienced a number of elections, so I have what to compare with. Normally election time, especially erev elections, the buildings are plastered with signs and there are flyers all over the streets and being handed out on street corners. Today, with elections looming less than 19 hours away, the streets are quiet and there are few signs hanging up from porches. People just do not care.
I assumed in Bet Shemesh it was quiet because it is a small city and most people know whom they are voting for and the parties more or less know how much support they have. no real need to get worked up. But in the big cities, there should be street battles looking for support. I was wrong. In the big cities it is also quiet. People really do not care.

3. I took two taxis on my venture through Tel Aviv. Both taxi drivers are voting Likud. One was an older Sephardic Jew and the second was a younger Ashkenazic Jew. They can clearly not be stereotyped into the same category of type of person who obviously votes Likud. Except for the same profession, I noticed no similarities between the two. Yet both are voting Likud.
One of them even (the younger one) even began to rant about how it is important to vote Likud as the rest are selling out the country and we need a strong Likud. It was refreshing to see that not everyone has been hoodwinked by Kadima. I might revise my predictions. I think when it comes down to actual voting, people may likely go back to their natural parties they have always supported and not vote kadima. It is easy to answer a pollster on the telephone and say the popular answer. When the vote counts, people are more idealistic and vote for ideology. Let's hope that is true.

Yes, the title is an actual quote. Meir Sheetrit, one of the Likud ministers who bolted for an opportune seat as a member of Kadima said last night in a pre-election rally that Kadima has no ideology. He was using this idea of no ideology as a strong point. He continued to say, "We do not have the baggage of the heritage of Jabotinsky or Katzenelson".

How can anyone vote for a party with no ideology. and claims that as a benefit?

I just came back from the wedding of the daughter of Carl at Israel Matzav. I was invited from the chassan's side. I introduced myself to my fellow jblogger Carl, though bcause he has been doing this much longer than me and is much more respected than me in the jblogosphere, I obviously am using the term "fellow jblogger" very liberally.

Anyway it was a beautiful wedding and very leibedig. I wish the young couple much happiness together building a bayis neeman b'yisrael.

I received the following notice in my email today. I thought some of you might be interested in taking advantage of it.. enjoy!

בנק הפועלים מזמין את עם ישראל לבקר בפסח ללא תשלום
במגוון אתרים ומוזיאונים ברחבי הארץ

פועלים למען תרבות, יופי וטבע בישראל –
השנה פועלים פי 2 יותר

בנק הפועלים יוצא זו השנה השנייה ברציפות בפרוייקט מיוחד למען כל תושבי מדינת ישראל ובכמות כפולה של אתרים

כל אזרחי ישראל מוזמנים לבקר - ללא תשלום -
ב-37 אתרים ומוזיאונים במהלך חול המועד פסח,
לעומת 20 אתרים בשנה שעברה,
גידול של כ- 85% במספר האתרים הפתוחים לקהל הרחב

חסכון מוערך למשפחה: כ- 300 ₪

עלות השקעה בפתיחת הפארקים: כ- 5 מיליון ₪
לעומת כ- 4 מיליון ₪ בשנה שעברה, גידול של 25% בהשקעה

הפרויקט יתקיים ביום הראשון של חול המועד פסח - יום ו' ט"ז בניסן תשס"ו 14/4/06, ביום ראשון י"ח בניסן 16/4/06, ביום שני י"ט בניסן 17/4/06 וביום שלישי ערב חג שני כ' בניסן 18/4/06.

לפרטים על האתרים ולמועדי פתיחה – טלמסר: 85-25-33-1212

שלמה נחמה- יו"ר בנק בפועלים אמר: "החלטנו להפוך את ימי חג החירות לימים בהם קיימת החירות לכל האזרחים ולכל משפחה בישראל להתחבר אל הטבע, התרבות והמורשת של ארצנו היפה והמרתקת. אני קורא לכל עם ישראל ובמיוחד לאלה ביננו שבדרך כלל אין ידם משגת לטייל עם משפחותיהם באתרים המיוחדים והחשובים האלו ברחבי הארץ: נשמח אם תנצלו את ההזדמנות הזו ותבלו עם כל בני המשפחה באתרי טבע ובמוזיאונים בכל אזור ברחבי הארץ בו תשהו בפסח. אנחנו משפחת בנק הפועלים, מאחלים לכל אחת ואחד מכם חג שמח ומהנה בלב הטבע והתרבות הישראלית."

דני דנקנר- יו"ר פועלים בקהילה אמר: "בנק הפועלים רואה חשיבות עליונה בקירוב העם למורשתו ולתרבותו, ובמסגרת זו החליט לאפשר להורים ולילדיהם בכל הארץ לטייל בפסח וליהנות ממגוון של מוזיאונים ואתרים הפרוסים ברחבי המדינה, מבלי שביקורים אלה יטילו עול כספי כבד על שכמן של המשפחות.

בבנק מאמינים כי הפרויקט יסייע להעשרת הידע של הילדים וההורים על מורשת ותרבות ישראל, ויהווה מקור להנאה ולבילוי בלתי-נשכחים בחג הפסח."

צבי זיו- מנכ"ל בנק הפועלים אמר: "בתקופת חג הפסח יוצאים המוני בית ישראל לטיולים ברחבי הארץ. לפיכך החליטה הנהלת בנק הפועלים לחזור ולצאת בפרויקט מיוחד, "פועלים למען תרבות, יופי וטבע בישראל", במסגרתו מוזמנים כל תושבי המדינה לביקור – ללא תשלום – ב-37 אתרים ומוזיאונים ברחבי ישראל במהלך חול המועד פסח. הבנק השקיע בפרויקט כ- 5 מיליון ₪".

במטרה להבטיח כי מספר מכסימלי של משפחות ייהנו מהפרויקט, יפרסם הבנק את המבצע בכל אמצעי התקשורת האלקטרונית הכתובה והאינטרנט.

היכן ניתן לבקר :
1) מוזיאון ארץ ישראל
2) שביל התפוזים
3) מוזיאון ישראל ירושלים
4) גן גורו
5) יער האיילים
6) מוזיאון עין חרוד
7) מוזיאון ר"ג לאומנות ישראלית
8) מוזיאון ת"א לאומנות ישראלית
9) מוזיאון חיל האוויר חצרים
10) מוזיאון הרצליה
11) מוזיאון בית התפוצות
12) מוזיאון הימי הלאומי חיפה
13) מוזיאון חיפה לאומנות ישראלית
14) מרכבות לטרון
15) בית ראובן
16) מוזיאון נחום גוטמן נווה צדק
17) מוזיאון גו אלון בנגב תרבות הבדואים
18) מוזיאון המדע על שם בלומפילד ים
19) גן החיות בחיפה
20) יער הקופים בידפת-גוש שגב
21) מוזיאון לאמנות אום אל פחם
22) מוזיאון יד ושם
23) יד מרדכי – בית הדבש והדבורה
24) סינמטק ת"א– סרטים עד 02:00 לפנות בוקר
25) מוזיאון עין הוד- ינקו דאדא
26) חי בר יטבתה
27) מרכז מבקרים חי רמון
28) גן לאומי עבדת
29) גן לאומי כוכב הירדן
30) שמורת טבע עינות צוקים
31) גן לאומי ציפורי
32) גן לאומי בית שאן
33) יד לשריון - לטרון
34) מוזיאון העלייה הראשונה ע"ש שרה ומשה אריזון
35) המוזיאון הלאומי למדע, טכנולוגיה וחלל חיפה
36) מוזיאון לוחמי הגטאות
37) המוזיאון לאומנות פ"ת

WestBankMama over at the WestBankBlog has thrown down the gauntlet and offered her predictions as to the results of the upcoming elections, and then asked for other blogger's predictions.

Instead of posting in the comments there, I decided to make this a full-blown post.
Now, I am not sure if these are "predictions" or what I hope will happen or some sort of combination of the two, and these "predictions" are based on nothing concrete, other than my own armchair analysis of the continuing polls, talking to people, watching the trends and trying to keep my finger on the pulse of the nation... My stocks do not do too well, so I would guess that my prediction capabilities are kind of weak, so do not use these if you are going to be betting on election results (and yes, there are betting sites taking bets on elections results, and no I will not link to them)

Here we go:


Kadima 26
Likud 19
Labor 18
Yisrael Beiteinu 12
Shas 10
NRP-NU 9
Arab parties 7
UTJ 6
Meretz 6
Aleh Yarok 3
Marzel 2
Shinui 2


This is a full prediction that totals 120 Knesset seats. I hope I am wrong in the sense that Kadima gets less than what I predicted (thereby increasing more seats in the right wing parties) but this is my prediction.

I hope Marzel gets in. Despite the fact that I would expect him to be ineffective in Knesset, as everyone else will automatically discount anything he says based on who he is, it will be refreshing watching someone who only says what he believes and will fight for Jewish values like no other party. Also, if he gets in, watch the petitions to the Supreme Court start right away to disqualify him due to racism.

A very poignant article by Naomi Ragen summing up the dillema of these elections.

Ha'Aretz is quoting (extracted from an interview with Israel Radio) Acting PM Olmert as saying, "Any Zionist, Jewish party is potential coalition partner".

Does that mean the Arab parties will not be brought into the coalition? Does that mean UTJ will not be brought in, as they officially do not accept Zionism? What about parties that decry Zionism as the cause of the problems, but have not necessarily denounced it, such as Meretz?