Turns Out Gaza is...Just Fine, Thank You, If You're Hamas.

 (nablopomo day 30)

What humanitarian crisis? What lack of material goods? What poverty and starvation? I'm certain that is going on, but it is not caused by the Israeli embargo.  It is caused by the current rulers of Gaza, Hamas, and their extremely uneven distribution of goods, services and money.  Gaza is now Hamastan, folks.

Here is a current example of what is going on in Gaza, told to us by none other than Ashraf Abu al-Houl, an Egyptian journalist (what? you've never heard of him? How about Tom Gross. Heard of him?), who was surprised to discover (GASP!) that Gaza is rich with abundant goods at low prices.  Wow. Who woulda thunk it.

If you'd like, you can even buy Zionist clothes (-and who wouldn't want to be seen wearing those?) at really affordable prices, in the new luxury mall. Then, after you bought all your cool Jew-clothes, go cool off at a water park.


Oh, but wait--although "supply is greater than demand," you may not be able to partake of these.  Well, let's see: are you a member of Hamas? Are you at least, an associate of Hamas, like a close friend of a member, perhaps?  Are you a member of UNRWA?  Or maybe, do you happen to own a smuggling tunnel to Egypt? 'Cause if you do, then you can definitely enjoy all these amenities--come on down!

What?  You're just an ordinary. . . citizen?  Well then, sorry--forget it.  Can't use 'em.  You're also probably unemployed (at the rate of 45%), anyway.
The evident prosperity is not enjoyed by all, or even most, of Gaza's residents, according to Al-Houl. The problem is the vast differences in the distribution of wealth. The luxury resorts and wide range of consumer goods are enjoyed by “only a few groups,” he said, primarily those who own smuggling tunnels to Egypt and those who work for international organizations such as the United Nations' UNRWA and who do not include or aid the rest of the population.
Most of the new resorts “are owned by members, or associates, of Hamas,” he reported. “In addition, the Hamas municipalities charge high fees, in Gaza terms, for the use of public beaches,” he added.
(Didn't I just write something about this, here?)

Comments

Batya said…
Looks like the good life.
1:25 PM
Lady-Light said…
Batya: Yup. If you're Hamas.
12:37 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Great Debate: Is it Itsy Bitsy, or Inky Dinky, of Spider Fame?

Image
For the better part of a year, I've had an on-again, off-again debate with my D.H. as to the "correct" adjective in the children's finger-play nursery rhyme, "The Itsy-Bitsy Spider" (now you know which one I favor). My D. H. insists that the correct descriptive is "inky dinky," whereas I demur.  I vaguely recollect from my own childhood, either hearing " itsy-bitsy spider ," or even more familiar to me, the description "eency-weency," referring to said spider's miniscule size, yet plucky persistance, and how he (she?) braved the violent rainstorm which "washed it out" after the arduous climb up the water spout, yet doggedly climbed the spout again, after the sun came out and 'dried up all the rain.' Many, if not most of our American nursery rhymes originated on the other side of the pond, in England, for obvious reasons: the American colonists were British in origin, and brought with them the culture an...
Read more

The End. Is there a Beginning...?

This is my first post back on Tikkun Olam since April 23rd, 2015. It does not feel real. Why is it that we never think we will ever have a JOLT in our lives that will change the entire life course we have been traveling? We continue on, day by day, complacent, even in the face of serious illness--believing that what we are living is the only reality; that it is immutable, that it is PHYSICAL: you can touch it, feel it, and it will continue to be there for you tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow... But it isn't. And it won't.  Because the unthinkable can, and does, happen, in time. To everybody. As it happened to me, almost a year ago, on August 10, 2015, when my DH - Dear Husband, of 46 years, died. I am living in an Alternate Universe. Because the universe in which I was living all my life until now, is gone. I still want to slap myself in the face and wake myself up. It's a dream. A terrible nightmare.  It's a horror movie with a frightening ending, but I will...
Read more

Hijab for Jewish Women?

Image
Someone used this phrase in a comment on a post about the hijab wearing Jewish women in Ramat Bet Shemesh Alef: "modern Hareidi community;" this is an oxymoron. Just for the record, I rarely agree with a Hareidi interpretation of anything. This mode of dress is just a bad interpretation of a good concept ( tzniyut ) taken to extremes. Personally, I cover my hair because I feel it increases my humility by remembering that there is a G-d above me ( not because of the reason of less attraction to men). I chose many years ago to do so; but I have come to believe a woman can be Orthodox without covering her hair all the time; just while in shul, and where it shows respect for the Torah, such as at shiurim, or where it is the preferred mode of dress, such as at yeshiva dinners and the like. But to go to the grocery? Not necessarily . I think the whole message of tzniyut is lost in those hijab cases: where will they go next? Hiding in the home and not going out? Sitting behind a cur...
Read more