Rabbi Yishai Fleischer of Kumah.org was recently interviewed on Al Jazeera...

Part 1:


Part 2:

"Maariv - they are 60 dogs!"

----Shiek Mohammed Tatawi about the Maariv newspaper

Tatawi denied the article Maariv wrote about him shaking Shimon Peres' hand mistakenly. He says he knew who Peres was and dhe initiated the handshake. maariv is a bunch of liars and 60 dogs.

After Rav Yaakov Yosef recently paskened that people should not participate in the upcoming census due to issues of counting people, the census people got nervous that many would not take part in the census.

They then went to Rav Ovadia Yosef and Rav Elyashiv, and others to get their opinions on the matter. .
Ravs Elyashiv, Karelitz and Wosner paskened that it is ok to participate in the census. The reasoning is that the count includes non-Jews as well, along with the fact that the purpose is not just to know a number (i.e. how many Jews are there), but to plan infrastructures, such as building hospitals and the like. It is more of a "survey" than a "census", and therefore it is acceptable.

An interesting point mentioned in the Ynet article on the topic is that the census people agreed to the Rabbonim that they would not share the info with government offices such as the tax authority, so as not to harm people who do not report their income... very strange request for the rabbis to make, IMO...

The Mishpacha newspaper article that discussed the topic also mentioned that part of the reason for it being allowed is because they only "count" about 20% of the population, so it is not really a count anyway. Also, it is all an evaluation and not an accurate count.

So when the census people come calling, feel free to participate!

With the Likud primaries about to begin, I would like to say I am optimistic about Moshe Feiglin getting in to the Knesset list, as possibly a couple other people from his list (not the general list of his recommendations - most of those will obviously get in, but I mean his limited list of four he initially recommended).

The media has given this primary the caption of being a fight between Feiglin and Netanyahu, so there is little chance of Feiglin not getting in. If he was so insignificant that he cannot win a realistic spot on the Likud list, there would be no need to declare it a Bibi - Feiglin battle.

What I have no understood is why Netanyahu played it up so much. Yes, he is afraid that with Feiglin on the list, the Kadima marketing people will brand the Likud as a gaggle of right wing extremists. He wants to be pictured as a centrist, so that troubles him.

However one person in the list being an extremist does not define the whole party as such. I do not see why it is such a big deal. At best (or worst, depending on your perspective) he will only be able to influence the party a bit by moving the bar to the right a bit. The bar will also be moved to the left by much more because of Meridor, Hefetz and Dayan. So it is very balanced, and I see no cause for concern even by Feiglin opponents. Anyway, no matter how well Feiglin places, there is no chance Netanyahu would offer him a ministerial job, so his influence will be very limited.

One of the methods used by netanyahu to lower Feiglin's chances was by increasing the amount of selections every voter has in the primary. He upped it from 10 to 15 (really to 12, but toalling 15 including the olim and regional slots).

The theory is that with more selections available, people will be less likely to choose the Feiglin candidate.

Feiglin was also concerned about that, and fought the request. In the end there was a compromise of 12 selections (plus 3) instead of 15 (plus 3).

But I fail to see why that should harm Feiglin. Adderabbe - Personally I think it increases Feiglin's chances. Now I can vote for more people and do not have to worry that I am wasting a vote by choosing some of Feiglin's recommendations. Because I have more selections to vote for.

If I had a bunch of people I wanted to support, I was ina dilemma which ones to vote for. I only had 10 choices. Somebody was going to get cut out of my ballot. Now with 12 selections, I can vote for the guys I want, and the Feiglin guys.

Personally I see the increase in selections to work in Feiglins favor, rather than against him.

Today is going to be an exciting day, as it is the first step in changing the guard.

If you are interested in voting in the Likud primaries tomorrow according to the instructions of Manhigut Yehudit (Moshe Feiglin), they have now released their recommended list, with instructions for how to vote.



I am pretty sure I will be voting almost completely according to the recommended list above. Almost everybody on the list is somebody I was going to vote for on my own anyway.

My only question remains Benny Begin. He comes with a stellar reputation, but I still get bad vibes from him. I think he is hiding some newly found ideas and directions. Everything I have read of his since his return to politics - articles about him, interviews with him, etc. all make me suspect he is no longer the right wing politician he used to be and is being touted as being.

I don't know who Osnat Mark is, and I was never a big fan of Gila Gamliel. So if I don't come up with alternate names I am comfortable with, I will vote for them. If I do find others, I will not feel obligated to vote for these two (three including Benny Begin). I would like to vote for Ayoub Kara, and perhaps I will give Yuli Edelstein one of these votes as well, because I think he has the highest integrity.

I just read an article about how somebody directed "Fiddler on the Roof" in Korean for the Kprean audience. They say the show is a big hit in Korea, and the locals consider it a very close depiction of the Korean way of life.

The Korean Times writes about it here...

and here is a clip of them practicing... (note: there are women in the group, and while I could not make out specific women singing, perhaps you will be able to. if that bothers you, don't watch the clip).

There is a new rock band playing the circuit that is surprising everybody.

The name of the band is "Bein Hashmashot". I read about them in the paper today, and what is surprising is that they are a religious rock band. that is - religious kids playing rock music. They are playing the circuit in the bars and nightclubs of Tel Aviv, which, according to the paper, has never experienced a group of religious rockers and thei religious followers and fans.

Actually, 3 of the regular members of the band are religious, and two are not. They play content that they describe as "spiritual rock" and "sometimes religious".

Here are a couple of clips from Bein Hashmashot. They definitely have a nice sound, if sometimes kind of folksy....

Remember a short while back I linked to an amazing story with Rav Chaim Kanievsky? He supposedly had said that Armageddon was coming by Hanukkah time and Mashiach was on the way...

It turns out the story was not true. Even though the author said he had verified it, he had only verified it second hand, and there was a mis-communication. Turns out it never really happened.

When he tried to verify the story after getting probably thousands of hits from different people linking to his post and sending it out by email, he found out that Rav Kanievsky never said such a thing. Not only that, but Rav Kanievsky said "Never trust anything said in my name."

Also, there was an article in this week's Mishpacha newspaper about it.

The story was going around. not just in the blogs, but it seems all over the place, especially in the Haredi world. As a matter of fact, my daughter told us the story at the table on shabbos, saying "Did you hear Rav Elyashiv said there will be a war and we will be in the bomb shelters on Hanukkah?". I said, first of all the story was with Rav Kanievsky, and second of all, Rav Kanievsky said it is not true...

Anyway - the article in the Mishpacha said that Rav Kaniebsky said the story never happened, and that he never said there would be a war by Hanukkah, etc. Another thing interesting he said, with a smile, was that he does not make such predictions, but he does say every day that he expects and awaits Mashiachs arrival... "b'chol yom she'yavo"

The Jerusalem Post published an interview with Moshe Feiglin.

The interview is very important, and in it many issues at the core of the debate between Bibi and Feiglin are discussed.

According to Moshe Feiglin, this interview explains the Manhigut/Feiglin positions and ideology perfectly.

Despite not having the courage to send an operation 10 minutes away from Israel to free captured soldier Gilad Shalit for the past 3 years....

Despite not having the strength or courage to defend southern Israel from the rocket attacks that happen daily from Gaza....

Despite the lawlessness reigning around the country in various forms - mafia, illegal construction, in the government itself there is plenty, and more...

Despite all that...

Our courageous and law upholding Defense Minister has proven his mettle today by upholding the law and violently throwing out a few Jews who bought a house in Hebron. Israel is a strong nation that follows the decisions of the Supreme Court. Israel will not allow people to break the law.

Thank you Ehud Olmert, Tzipi Livni and Ehud Barak for restoring our confidence in the integrity of the government.

Jon Stewart disses blogging...

Yesterday I had two opportunities to see the stereotypical Israeli.

I first had the opportunity to spend some time in a couple of "Musachim" - car mechanics' garages. Then I had Parent-Teacher conferences at night for my boys' school.

Each opportunity provided a view of a different aspect of the stereotypical Israeli.

At the mechanics place I am getting my car taken care of. The owner is a guy who just kind of wanders around watching what is going on, supervising his employees, passes a few words with the customers, etc.
Suddenly, in comes a customer with a complaint. Perhaps you can call it an accusation. "The piece you sold me last month is defective - This is the second time since then that it has broken down."

So, somebody might respond "let's check the problem and see what is wrong with it". Or perhaps, "I'll replace it for you at cost, or for free", or "you broke it by misusing it", or a dozen other responses.

The owner of the "musach" suddenly turns into a lion, as if he sees his whole business being threatened with closure by this one accusation. He starts screaming louder than anything I have heard in a long time. He says the guy is a liar. He tells his employee to put back the old piece and let him go somewhere else. He screams you bought junk , so you got junk - you wanted a cheap part, so cheap parts do not last. And more. Just screaming and screaming. The part is not defective, it is the way you used it.

I am not taking sides. I do not know who is right and who is wrong.

Suddenly, his screaming kind of scares the customer a bit, and they go through a process of checking the part. The process is really one where the "musachnik" can "prove" that it is the guys fault and not his, because nobody really knows anything about car parts, and these "musachniks"can point at every dent, bump or even a totally innocuous looking smooth part, and say "that is what caused it! We found the problem!"

I did not stay for the end of the story, as I had to go, but when I left, the "musachnik" was proving his case, the customer was walking around muttering "what can I do, fine, he is right", and it looked like peace was coming back to the garage.

At the Parent - Teachers conference, they sent home notes warning parents that these meetings are not for long discussions. Parents should spend no more than 5 minutes by each rebbe, as there are a lot of parents waiting. If a parent has more issues to discuss that require a lot of tie, they should call the rebbe, make appointments to see him at other times, etc.

The problem generally is there is not much time allotted, and there are always a few parents who sit for 15 minutes talking, which backs up the whole line. The rebbe ends up having to stay very late. The parents get upset because they are delayed. And nobody, except the parent who sat for 15 minutes, ends up happy.

So this time, the school sent home a few notes in the preceding days to please make sure not to sit more than 5 minutes with the rebbes.

Sure enough - what happens" The conference is scheduled to start at 7:00. Not a single rebbe came before 7:10, and some came as late as 7:25.

So all the parents who had signed up on the appointment sheets" for the slots from 7:00-7:30, are already, before anybody even sat down, delayed, and the conference will then be backed up, forcing the rebbes to stay late, and the parents to be upset.

Then of course, at least by the classrooms I was waiting for, the first parent sat for almost 15 minutes backing everything up even more.

While the army and government apparently has no problem picking unnecessary fights against Jews in Hebron and sending plenty of troops in to shut down the area, the situation in the area of Gaza is much different.

There, the government has been waffling for 3.5 years already. They are constantly saying that we will eventually have to go in and clean out the terrorists and rockets, yet 3.5 years later they are still saying the time is not right for an operation. Meantime, despite truces and ceasefires and whatnot, rockets are still raining down daily on the communities surrounding the Gaza border, even up to Ashkelon and Ashdod.

Gilad Erdan - a current Likud MK, is a pretty good guy. I have liked him, since he began to advance in the Likud ranks about 5 years ago. Erdan even has in his favor the fact that he stood up to Ariel Sharon and opposed the disengagement in the votes leading up to that period. He is a man of integrity, and he considers himself to be a candidate for the Justice Minister position ina future Netanyahu government (though really he is dreaming if he thinks Bibi will give it to him over Meridor, though he is qualified)

Gilad Erdan made a very interesting suggestion and proposed a law the other day. He proposed that they should take Hamas affiliated prisoners and use them as human shields in the communities around Gaza. He figures that with Hamas people possibly turning into victims, they would be reluctant to continue shooting the rockets at us.

I personally think that is a great idea. The only problem with it is that it is a Geneva war crime to use a live prisoner as a human shield. So I would suggest that we kill the prisoners first and then use them as dead human shields, which is not a war crime (maybe killing them is, I am not sure). But anyway, shooting rockets at innocent civilians is also a Geneva War Crime, and they don't seem too overly concerned, so I don't think we should be either.

In response to that suggestion and proposed law, the issue was raised as to what Judaism's position would be on such an idea. Is it allowed?

Rav Yuval Cherlow of the Hesder Yeshiva of Petach Tikva was asked the question. Rav Cherlow answered saying, "I see no ethical problem using a Hamas prisoner as a shield against attacks from Hamas (only from Hamas - it would not be allowed to use a Hamas prisoner as a shield against attacks from other enemy). There are other considerations, so I am only answering from a theoretical viewpoint. When two forces are fighting a war with each other, and Hamas presents itself not as a band of terrorists, but as a ruling force, we need to relate to them as a battle between two forces, and then such behavior would be allowed."

So it is ok halachically as well. Now we just have to get the law passed, so while the government continues to waffle and refuse to expend any effort in Gaza, but spend all their energy fighting Jews in Hebron, this will be a good solution to slow down the rocket barrage yet still not fight.

Hannuka gelt in the New York Times? A cool gift...

The story reported in the paper is amazing, if the details are true (which I have no way of verifying).

The story, briefly, is that a businessman involved in real estate had an offer to be involved in a deal in the Japanese market. Not knowing what to do, he send a letter via a messenger to Rav Chaim Kanievsky asking his advice.

Rav Kanievsky responded that he should not get involved in the Japanese market, and if he is interested because the business in the US is bad, he should come to Israel.

He showed Rav Kanievsky's response to his rabbi, who told him if that is what Rav Kanievsky said, you better drop the idea of Japan. And the rabbi then told him the following story to explain:

A frum Jew in New Jersey was involved in a car accident in which he killed an elderly non-Jewish fellow. The driver was exonerated and the court said it was not his fault.

Still, he was troubled by the fact that he had killed a person. He could not sleep at night because of it. He wanted to know what he could do. So he sent a letter to Rav Chaim Kanievsky describing the situation and asking what he could do.

Rav Kanievsky sent back a one word response: "Amalek".

He had no idea what that meant, and he continued to be troubled by what had happened.

Eventually he decided to move. When looking for a new house, the seller of one told him that they wanted to get rid of it, because they were inheritors. their father had been killed in a car accident.
He then discovered that the father who had been killed was the one who had been involved in the accident with him. He then went through the house and discovered in the basement a box of pictures.

In the box were old pictures of this man as a young man in a Nazi SS uniform standing next to Adolph Hitler. He also found a list of names of people this person had killed when he was a Nazi officer.

He now understood what Rav Kanievsky had said. He had told him he could be calm, because he had killed a card-carrying member of Amalek!

When this fellow heard that story, he immediately cancelled the offer for the Japanese deal. he decided to come to Israel for a visit, and when in Israel he went to see Rav Chaim Kanievsky and get a bracha.
While still in Israel, he received an offer from an Israeli company to be their representative in the US for their real estate deals.

Here are a couple of videos of Moshe Feiglin on television news talk shows explaining his positions on some issues and where he stands, and why Bibi is trying to do him in, and his response to that...





He makes a very good point when asked about his inclusion in the Likud list possibly chasing away up to 6 seats worth of voters from the Likud. He says that there are more people who don't vote Likud because the Likud has mnoved too far to the left - they now vote Ichud Leumi or Lieberman. With him in the Likud, all those people would now feel comfortable again voting Likud, and they would come back...

(HatTip to Jameel for one of the Feiglin videos)