Initially I felt some solidarity and understanding for the protests being held by the Ethiopian community. Even though I do not like illegal protests, and I don't like protests blocking roads and stopping innocent and uninvolved people from getting to where they need to go - home, doctors, weddings, work, school, whatever - at least i felt some solidarity with the protest.

It is pretty justified, considering the amount of violence they suffer at the hands of the police, culminating in the shooting yesterday of an unarmed Ethiopian man. Who would not say that if any protest is justified it is the protest of Ethiopians for the way they are normally mistreated by the authorities in Israel?

That being said, seeing the unending protests disturbing so many people, along with the horrible levels of violence at these protests against innocent people, they are losing a lot of sympathy from the public. I saw that video of the protester who jumped a random passing car and smashed in the windshield. There were also other videos showing horrible levels of violence. I don't know if the police are staying away intentionally, hoping the protests die down on their own, but what is going no uncontested and uncontrolled is out of hand and is going to be counter-productive. Maybe they need to shock the authorities, and this might do it, but they are losing the people.

Ehud Barak has announced his plans to deal with the Draft Law. He calls the entire thing a bluff and being that none of the various attempts have worked, it is time to come up with a different approach.

Baraks approach is to break the strong connection between the Haredi parties and Netanyahu. He wants to be seen as solving the biggest problem for the Haredi parties - the draft law - and that will open the Haredi parties up to possible political arrangements besides for a coalition with Netanyahu. And Barak also thinks that this will effect a significant increase in Haredim joining the workforce.

Barak's new approach will have four stages:

1. The IDF will draft to fill its needs and whoever wants to serve will be drafted. The IDF salaries for soldiers will be increased to be "appropriate", whatever that means.

2. Everyone else, those who do not get drafted to the IDF, will serve in Sherut Leumi or Sherut Ezrachi - National Service or Civilian Service. This will include everyone who does not get drafted - Haredim, Arabs and anyone else.

3. The maximum possible number of Haredim will then join the workforce, including men and women.

4. There will be a respectable arrangement for a group the best Torah-learners and their tstaus will be "torasam umanusam" - torah is their trade. This will be in line with the tradition set by David Ben Gurion and in line with the Jewish commitment to tradition.


Barak's first step sounds almost like Feiglin's. Feiglin wants to cancel the draft law completely and make a professional army with a high salary that will be attractive for those who choose to serve. Barak seems to be saying something similar -  nobody HAS to serve, but a good salary will attract many to serve. He still insists it will be a "people's army", but I think that with no obligation and an easy out, he will end up being very surprised to see how few actually do want to continue giving up 3 years of their life rather than start university or travel.

Barak's second step seems to forget the fact that the mainstream Haredi public, and especially the leadership, is against Sherut Leumi as vociferously as they are opposed to real IDF service. Maybe he thinks they can brought to compromise on this in exchange for cancellation of the draft, but I dont see it happening.

Barak's third step seems to forget the recent study that shows the IDF service is not the impediment to joining the workforce that we all thought. Perhaps Barak disagrees, or maybe the results and analysis published were just one way to read the information but maybe it is not accurate. I dont know. I would not be surprised to see, should Barak win or end up in government (he says this will be a condition of his joining a government , not just if he becomes prime minister) and implement this, that he'll cancel the draft (if even possible) and the mainstream and majority of Haredi men will still not join the workforce, continuing to prefer the kolel life.

Barak's fourth step leaves open the question of who will decide which avreichim are the truly exceptional and how will it be decided. This is always the question in any proposal of a full exemption for the exceptional "few". Likely it will end up with those spots being given to the children and friends of rosh yeshivas and other haredi elite with protexia, rather than those who actually deserve it.

The one thing I do like about this is that he is making an attempt to try something new rather than rehashing all the old ideas...

Rav Shalom Cohen, head of the Council of Torah Sages of Shas, issued an interesting psak yesterday. Rav Cohen said that women should not get ultrasound tests while pregnant. He says there is no need to know the gender of the baby in advance and there is no need to see if the baby is complete or not. For what purpose?

Rav Cohen said that one should not do an ultrasound, and if one is planning the healing in advance, he should expect the problems. He said there is an expression that God prepares the solution in advance of the problem. The expression is God is מקדים רפואה למכה but that means that if you plan the refuah first, if you prepare the solution, you have to be concerned that you will be hit with the problem.
source: Kikar

In other words, as I understand it, you are at more risk of having problems by trying to prepare solutions in advance. So, going to get a ultrasound, that does not really help with anything anyway, is going to be the cause of problems with the pregnancy and baby, God forbid.

Former Prime Minister Ehud Barak announced earlier today the latest acquisition to his as yet unnamed political party.Somehow he landed Sagit Peretz-Deri, a local Bet Shemesh activist and lawyer.



I happen to know Sagit a bit. She is smart, intelligent, thoughtful and energetic. Being that she used to be in the right wing camp, as a member of Habayit Hayehudi, and then I think she supported Bennett's new Yemin Chdash party, I am not sure how this happened that she moved over so far to the Left. It will be interesting to hear how she made this decision when she puts out a public statement.

I think the right-wing parties really need to make a cheshbon nefesh and try to figure out why they are losing so many good people.

Fake News: “Friedman uses sledgehammer to destroy wall under Palestinian homes.” Real News: “Friedman uses sledgehammer to break ceremonial cardboard wall to open once-in-a-century archeological discovery.”

— David M. Friedman (@USAmbIsrael) July 1, 2019

lol

We are opposed to the entry of the hassidim of Toldos Ahron into our city [of Harish]. This is a consolidated and separatist group that cannot find its place in this city. The Haredim in town will be hurt the most from their entry.

  -- Mayor of Harish Yitzchak Keshet

note - Keshet is haredi (baal teshuva) himself

obviously this statement upset people in the haredi


community who asked if you can stop them from living in your city (if it is even possible), what is to stop others from saying the same things about any other haredi group and stopping haredim form living in their cities...

Last night was supposed to be the final deadline for towns that have yet to pass the 2019 budget to do so. Failing to do so at the June 30 dealine would mean dispersal of the City Council, the mayor heading to a disciplinary hearing to ensure that he truly put forth his best efforts to pass the budget, and consideration for removal with the appointment of a ruling committee to run the city.

There are five cities/towns in Israel that were at risk last night of failing to meet the deadline. The only interesting one is Tiberias. The others are not in the news because they seem to be boring, though I am sure if I looked for the info about them it is probably available. Tiberias is interesting because its mayor is Ron Kubi. Kubi has been a loudmouth, especially against the Haredi politicians, with mixed results in Tiberias, though he has not been able to form a local coalition or pass a budget with the other parties, besides for his own, basically refusing to work with him (they blame him for not making any efforts to pass a fair budget and to deal properly with the needs of the city). Besides for that they have basically decided to hold strong against Kubi and not allow him to pass the budget in the hope that this will eventually lead to his removal.

Last night Kubi was to host a final attempt to pass the budget. Minister of Interior Aryeh Deri announced that he is giving the affected towns an extra two weeks extension to pass the budget.

That means that Deri, who has been regularly attacked by Kubi, essentially saved Kubi's job for now. Kubi, and the other mayors, has another two weeks to try to get one more vote to pass the budget.

The haredi media are all a bit shocked the Deri saved Kubi's neck, after Kubi has incessantly attacked Deri. Personally I think it was a good move by Deri. For Deri to remove him without a public uproar and visuals of a conflict of interest, it has to appear completely justified and on the up and up. Deri cannot appear in the slightest to be taking revenge on Kubi or to have a dislike for Kubi as the cause.

By giving Kubi the extra two weeks (after the previous extensions came due), which anyways he can be pretty sure will not help, he is showing that he is not biased and has done everything possible to give Kubi a fair chance and enough time to pass the budget. If Kubi still remains unsuccessful, if Deri should choose to remove him from office, he will be able to do so with relatively clean hands and the removal will look as justified as it actually will be.

Deri is no dummy.

A group of Chabadniks went up to Ramat Trump in the Golan Heights and printed a copy of the Tanya on location.

They said that printing the book gives a spiritual strengthening to the area. They are confident it will make a significant impact on the people of the area and on all of Israel.

They actually printed 3 copies of the Tanya and will be sending 1 copy each, bound in special expensive leather binding, to Ambassador David Friedman, PM Benjamin Netanyahu, and US President Donald Trump. 100 copies, bound normally, will be distributed among the local residents of the Golan.
source: Kikar

cute

I am a little surprised Friedman and Greenblatt got actively involved in this, but I am good with it