Tikkun Olam

The fine-toothed comb of Time marches on Through the scalp of Life . I knew it. I knew it. I knew that by coming here and taking care of my three rambunctious grandkids I would be entering a time machine and going back in time. And it's happened! Despite my arthritis, nasty knees, lower back pain and fatitude (just coined a new word; you like it?), I am growing backwards into childhood, or rather into being a (younger-like) parent, complete with lacking sleep and not having time to shower for days (don't get too close) caring for three kids under nine. I'd forgotten what it's like: getting kids UP in the morning, getting them washed and dressed (they can do some or most of it themselves, except for the one with the cast on her right arm...) and fed, getting the bathing suits on and slathering them up with sunscreen and putting the change-of-clothes and towels in the backpack and making sure their lunchboxes are also in and that everything is LABELED with their names on...

Well, we're off! Tomorrow we fly like a boid to see our grandkids in sunny south Florida...well, not actually just to 'see' them. More like to make 3 lunches and snacks the night before and pack them in their backpacks with a change of clothes and underwear and label everything with their names on it with a Sharpie and dress them in swimsuits and slather them with sunscreen over their swimsuits and then dress them with clothes over their swimsuits and drive them to camp ever...

I don't want to say it (besides which, Steven Plaut said it very well first), but Israel is almost like the fool who keeps beating his head against a brick wall again and again, thinking that each time he does it--he might (finally) get the wall to break; instead, his head does (G-d forbid) . Perusing blogs I found this (hat tip Daled Amos ) about fantasy land and wishful thinking on Israel's part: doing the same thing over and over again hoping for different results. It is the " Two States for Two Peoples " fantasy by Plaut, last in the long line of previous fantasies, such as (in no particular order) the Oslo Accords , Camp David , the Road Map , the disengagement from Gaza , etc. In all cases, the surrounding Arab states have not officially recognized Israel as a Jewish state nor its right to exist, nor have the rocket and terrorist attacks against Israelis ceased. Basically it still is as they say the "same old same old." And here comes Israel's Pr...

Everyone is posting about Obama's speech in Cairo, or Bibi's speech at Bar Ilan and how he 'wiped the floor' with Obama-or not-depending upon whom you read; but not I (said the walrus). Instead, I am posting about a yummiest dish, noodle Google..er.. Koogle . What is it, you ask (thought you'd never)? It is the new Kosher Search Engine for Orthodox Jews, approved by Rabbis and launched in Israel. A Jewish take-off on the name "Google," it is a search engine which will filter out unseemly images,unholy content, un-tziniosdik ladies, etc. Seems that this search engine will also "restrict purchases of taboo items including television sets..." (hmmm, what about DVD players?) Amoz Azizoff (one of the people who set up Koogle) also said: "There are lots of orthodox homes that don't have computers but for business purposes, or for people who want to be part of the 21st century, if you're going to have one the best way is to use one that f...

My last post was an angry one. I did not want to end the week on that note, so I am posting about the weekly end-goal of every Orthodox Jew: Shabbat. We say that "Jews keep Shabbat," but I truly believe that it is "Shabbat that has kept the Jews," alive and kicking, for thousands of years; it is the focus of the week. When I still taught elementary school, I would always write the date on the board as "the second day of the week of the Holy Sabbath" (in Hebrew, it sounds a lot better.) At any rate, I wish you all a peaceful and holy Shabbat.

It's all over the news: Gunman Opens Fire at Holocaust Museum . It is a terrible thing, that this excuse for a human being-a Nazi lover, racist and antisemite- murdered a young married security guard, only 39 years old. President Obama responded with a statement of condolences for the slain guard's family, and he also said this: "This outrageous act reminds us that we must remain vigilant against anti-Semitism and prejudice in all its forms. No American institution is more important to this effort than the Holocaust Museum, and no act of violence will diminish our determination to honor those who were lost by building a more peaceful and tolerant world." This is where democracy works against itself. In order to build "a more peaceful and tolerant world," we have to act to eliminate those who would harm the decent people of the world and who resort to violence. In other words, in order to create a more tolerant world, we have to be, ourselves, in...

Tel-Aviv just celebrated it's centennial this past April.It was started by 60 families as a Jewish neighborhood at the edge of the city of Jaffa, which was mainly Arab. It is now the financial capital of Israel and a bustling metropolis. It is a World Class City. 100 years ago it was a "settlement." Obama wants Israel to freeze the expansion of "settlements," and stop building new "settlements." Let us ponder for a moment, what is a Jewish "settlement?" It is Jewish "settlers" who created the State of Israel. They were merely following the injunction of the Bible to settle the land which G-d had given us. I don't understand it. Christians also believe in the Bible, or so I thought. Why is it that they do not support Israel in expanding its settlements? Why does the world overtly support the Arabs' claims that Israel is "illegally" building on 'Arab' land? It was never "Arab" land; it was, ...

Sing post title to that tune from the Sesame Street program (Hebrew means "find the differences"). Hat tip: Solomonia .

Hevel Havalim (there. I spelled it my way: the way it would be spelled in Ivrit, when not a sof pasuk) #220 is up and running at Esser Agarot h (ok, I would also spell that 'esser agorot,' but that's not how Ben-Yehudah spells it, so--deferring to the blog author here. Oy, the curses of being a Hebrew teacher. . . ) My previous post We Were All Duped is linked there; for some reason, he always links me last in my category. Should I get a complex over that, or is it a good thing? Something to ponder. . . I was perusing articles and blogs in researching my previous post, and I found a really good comment by someone about the subject (Obama's speech and apparent attitude). I don't remember the writer's name, and in any event, there was no link I could follow--and to top that off I don't even remember where I read it. But it was so good and to the point, that I am reprinting it here, and if the author comes across it here, please email me (and th...

. . .About Barak Obama. Well, I will exclude myself in this: I had grave misgivings about him, given his history of associations and affiliations (read about some of them here and here .) But the vast majority (as written in Commentary Magazine) of Jews in the U.S. did vote for him: around 78% . Historically, we Jews vote Democratic, because of our long-standing concern about social justice and reform--for which the Democratic Party (supposedly) stands--which I attribute to social values stemming from the Torah, even though many secular or unaffiliated Jews might not be aware or disagree. But after Mr. Obama was elected, I hoped for the best, and was ready to support and rally behind my President, in his attempts to right the wrongs and evils of this country and the world. These days, however, I am getting more and more worried about him, now that he is spreading his--in my opinion, extremely misguided--message of how to achieve 'peace in the Middle East' to the Arab count...

This is one of my most favorite songs. It's solid Americana, and although I'm not generally a Country Music genre fan, it's so infectious--you just have to get up and dance! Yep. It also reminds me of my youngest, currently just having recently passed the Loren in Officer's Training Course in the IDF . You should see how my Rambo dances it--she's something else. If her platoon ever discovered her talents, look out! (YEEhaw). cotton eyed joe - rednex