Rav Shteinman is quoted as having said, when encouraging all yeshiva students and kollel yungerleit from around Israel to attend the funeral of Rav Sheinberg zt"l earlier today, that "to our distress just about no "talmidei chachomim gedolim" remain in our generation, and the few that remain should be treated with great respect."


------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

The IDF does not give special treatment to any soldiers, no matter who they are.

That statement is probably not true, but Private Yair Netanyahu did not get any special treatment when he was caught after having abandoned his post to go home for a nice meal.

Channel 2 News reports that Yair Netanyahu, serving in the IDF in the international communications office for the IDF Spokesmans office, was on duty this past Friday night when he decided to go home to join his family for Friday night dinner. He decided on his own, without first getting permission from his commanding officer.

Netanyahu was caught because foreign reporters called the office for a response about something, but nobody answered the phone.

Considering he was on duty with another soldier, the article says nothing about why the other soldier did not answer the phone.

When they could not find Yair, they contacted him by phone. he responded with a text message saying he ran home to bring some food. A few hours later, it became clear he had not just run home for a quick bite or to bring food back to the office, but he had gone home for a nice long meal.

Netanyahu was judged and "convicted" to 3 weeks on base without leaving, for abandoning his post and for lying to his commanding officer.

I think it is pretty cool that he gets what he deserves despite being the son of the prime minister... no protexia will be used to save him from this..

------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

In the wake of the Toulouse shooting, an interesting law has been proposed to the Knesset.

The Toulouse murders nearly led to another Israeli PR disaster. The Israeli politicians were quick to raise the issue in Knesset and talk about anti-semitism, but when it was time to decide to bury the bodies of the victims in Israel, the idea was initially met with problems.

An Israeli citizen who dies, is entitled to free burial by Bituach Leumi. This comes with limitations, such as not being able to choose one's desired burial plot, not being able to guarantee being buried next to any specific person, etc. For free, you basically take what you are given. If you want to guarantee a specific plot, a specific cemetery, two (or however many) plots together, or anything else, you have to pay.

Someone who is not Israeli is not entitled to the free burial. People who send their beloved deceased to be buried in Israel must pay for the process on their own. Victims of terror that has targeted Jews has been a case-by-case exemption. There is no law allowing them to be buried n Israel on the State coffers, but each time it happens the Knesset or whatever committee is in charge, has the power to make the decision to pay for the burial, and that is what actually happens.

When it was decided to bury the victims of Toulouse in Israel, the bureaucracy stepped forward saying the State would not pay for it. Fortunately, before a PR disaster exploded, arrangements were made, the exception was granted and the bodies are on the way, "on the house", so to speak.

Because of this mess, MK Yaakov "Ketzaleh" Katz has proposed a law to solve this problem. Katz's proposal would make the State of Israel pay for the burial of Jewish victims of terror - people who were killed because they are Jewish.

Katz said in his proposal "attacks against Jews due to anti-semitism has been part of our lot since our exile from our land about 1900 years ago. Even after the Godly vision began to be realized and the Jewish dream throughout the ages began to actualize: the establishment of a Jewish state, not for a moment has anti-semitism around the world ended. 
The State of Israel was established through the grace of God via the Jewish people for the jewish people and it is connected to all the Jewish people. Because of this, Israel expects and wishes for the ascent of all Jews from the Diaspora...
In the recent attacks against Jews, the problem has risen again in which victims are brought from abroad for burial in Eretz Yisrael and because they are not citizens of Israel, they do not merit burial paid for by the State, as befits kedoshei yisrael. Each time specific instructions must be given in each instance and the issue becomes the cause of unnecessary national embarrassment. 
This proposal would arrange by law that the standing of the burial of a Jew attacked around the world because he is a Jew and is brought to Israel for burial will be equal to the standing of an Israeli citizen."
(source: INN)

Basically, Israel is for the Jews, and not just for the Israelis.

------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

It was actually cool and interesting to follow (even partially) this on Twitter earlier this morning.

In a raid that sounded like France had become the "Wild West", the police had a shootout with the suspect they were trying to arrest for the shooting at a Jewish school in Toulouse, France killing four, and for other recent shootings.

He claimed to be linked to Al Qaeda. That is different than what they initially thought, that the fellow was a neo-Nazi.


------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Rabbi Chaim Pinchas Scheinberg Passes Away at 101



------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Israelis - from Pioneers to Entrepreneurs 



------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Yohai Ben Abi: Frum From Birth

Songs is in Hebrew, and the lyrics are very interesting..



------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

My son just told me that he and his friends are already collecting wood for Lag B'Omer...

weird..

------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

A few days ago it was announced that the plan to upgrade Highway 38 - from Shaar Ha'gay until Bet Shemesh - has finally received it's final approval in the various Knesset committees. The budget approved for it is 740 million NIS, and it is going to take a very long time to complete the project - about 10 years. The approval is only for the main section of the highway - until Bet Shemesh, but does not include the continuation further south past Bet Shemesh towards Ramat Bet Shemesh and beyond towards Kiryat Gat.

Mayor of Bet Shemesh Moshe Abutbol worked very hard for very long, pressuring the various committees to keep this on the agenda, along with involving various Members of Knesset until the approval was finalized.

Abutbol deserves a lot of credit for successfully getting Highway 38 upgraded. This highway is too small for the level of traffic it bears. While the coming 10 years will most likely be a disaster driving on the highway due to the coming road works, this was absolutely necessary and is a big accomplishment.

------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Adar is known as the month in which "Yagon" was turned to "simcha" - "grief" was turned to "joy".

A bride on the way to her wedding last week in Bnei Braq ran into a major obstacle. The Vizhnitzer Rebbe had just died and the because of the masses attending the funeral, she would not be able to get through the crowds to get to her wedding on time (what wedding in Bnei Braq starts on time anyway???).

The bride called the ZAKA hotline. When they heard about her problem, they sent an ambulance to drive her to the wedding hall. The ambulance was able to make its way through the crowd, and she made it to the wedding hall on time. (source: Jewish Press)

Zaka, which is normally active in times of grief, was turned to being useful for joy.



------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Quote Of The Day

Today, in France, we witnessed the reprehensible murder of Jews, among them young children, in what may well have been an anti-Semitic attack. I heard no condemnation of the murder from the United Nations. What I did hear was that the United Nations Human Rights Council hosted a senior member of Hamas who spends his days plotting to murder Jews.
I have only one thing to say to the UN Human Rights Council: You know nothing about human rights. Shame on you

  --- PM Benjamin Netanyahu

------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Peres Speaks Persian, Wishes Happy Holidays To Iranians And Threatens Iran



------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Delicious Passover Food

Pesach is coming.. Here is a clip from a food show about cooking for Pesach...



------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Avraham Fried in a Concert For IDF Soldiers



------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Quote Of The Day

We are in a period of the ingathering of the exiles. Here in Eretz Yisrael the jewish nation is returning to its national health and here is clarified and is expressed all its energies, as appropriate for a nation returning to its inheritance. We do not put our security in the hands of Sarkozy or Obama, or any of the world leaders, who for 2000 years of exile showed us that they are only in the category of a broken reed cane that only brought about destruction. The Jews of France and its leaders must do everything in their power to return to Eretz Yisrael. There is no Jewish future in the Diaspora. The future of Judaism is in Eretz Yisrael. Here the Jewish nation is establishing its reign with strength and wonder towards the entire world.

  -- MK Yaakov "Ketzaleh" Katz (Ichud Leumi)
------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------

Interesting Posts #369

1. A Beautiful Day In The Pouring Rain

2. A Personal Memory Of The Head Of Lev Tahor

3. Rav Shteinman On The Hospitalization of Gedolim and Iran

4. Should Rabbi Druckman Receive The Israel Prize?

5. Teitch = Deutsch

6. Refocusing The Battle Against The Internet

7. Shortening Shabbos Davening

8. TAPPS Is A Bunch Of Bigots

9. Breuer's Choir On Purim

------------------------------------------------------
Reach thousands of readers with your ad by advertising on Life in Israel
------------------------------------------------------