The Dude.

The following post is in response to "I'll Call Baila's" superlative praise for the Israeli "dude shemesh" (solar hot water heater) ...

Erev Shabbat at the Muqata residence.

One by one, the kids shower, and get ready for Shabbat.

Plenty of time...always plenty of time. (Read the link if you haven't seen the story before)

[insert Jaws shark attack music here]

10 Minutes before Shabbat, I'm the last to take a shower. It's late, but I can make it....and then...there's no hot water left.

Not even lukewarm. Nothing.

The "Dude" was on for hours, but 7 kids will empty out your hot water supply quick enough.

We tried the "Gush Katif Always Available" hot water system.

Alas, it caught fire.

I climbed into our attic to see why there was no water pressure and saw smoke coming out of the "new and improved always available water system" -- I spent the rest of the day on oxygen in the emergency room.

Needless to say, that was disconnected.

The problems with the "dude" are many. Unlike in the US where the hot water boiler is usually in the basement, in Israel, the dude is usually in the attic or on your roof. That's convenient for the (optional) solar panels which warm water using the sun (saving electricity/gas, etc), but inconvenient when it comes to maintenance.

And maintenance is part and parcel of the dude. Following is my personal list of possible problems with your dude...

1. The most common of all is the "Guf Chimum" -- the heating element. Israel's water supply is based on "hard water" -- our water supply is rich in minerals, specifically calcium. The problem with calcium is that when heated, it bonds with metal, causing all sorts of problems. The electricity based heating element in the dude dies every 2-3 years and needs to be replaced.

(example of a guf chimum)

Its programmed to die on Erev Shabbat, usually in the winter, and usually when you have lots of kids around -- the more kids who need showers, the more likely it is your dude's "goof chimum" will die when you need it most. To replace it, you need to remove the old one...which requires all the water in your dude to come splashing out. Of course, your dude is probably in the attic -- and my house doesn't have a concrete floor under the dude -- just rafters and plaster, so I need to be careful that the water doesn't damage the plaster (and cause the whole floor/ceiling to collapse).

While I personally don't recommend replacing a guf-chimum on your own, here's a short video for the very brave (or foolish). Keep in mind; replacing it may cause your dude to leak, and then you'll need to completely open it up again to fix the leak... While I consider myself rather handy, I try to avoid dealing with the dude.



2. The Thermostat. Mounted underneath the dude -- these have a life expectancy of 3-5 years and can cause 2 problems. It can die, and not allow your dude to heat any water. Or, it can die and allow the dude to heat itself up as hot as possible. Without a fail-safe pressure valve on your dude, it could explode (see #3)

3. The Dude Split. The life expectancy of a dude is 10-15 years. The seam of the dude may start to leak, giving you an early indication to quickly replace your dude. The longer you wait -- the more dangerous it gets. A neighbor of ours was lucky. He went into his attic to examine his dude, and a minute after leaving the attic he heard a massive explosion upstairs. Outside his house, neighbors thought a bomb went off -- also because of all the smoke coming out of the roof tiles -- but it was steam. The dude exploded due to a faulty thermostat and a small split in the dude seam (and a possible broken pressure valve). My neighbor benched gomel in shul, having narrowly avoided getting burned to death by the exploding dude.

4. The Leaker. The seals around the dude's feeder and exit pipes (cold water going in, hot water going on) erode over time and need to be replaced. Similar to replacing the guf chimum, this requires draining the entire dude.

5. The Deep Freeze. When cold winter nights hit Israel and its around 1-2 degrees Celcius (or 32-35 degrees Fahrenheit) outside, if you don't leave a small trickle of hot water running, your dude's solar heating "koltim" (outside panels) run the risk of freezing...and exploding.

So, while it sounds like a great idea, these hot water boilers are rather high maintenance....and extremely inconvenient when they break down on Erev Shabbat.

There are other solutions, like the "heat water as you go" gas system...and some claim to have miracle systems which keep calcium/lime from accumulating on the guf chimum.

I don't believe in miracles. Well, not if they have the word, "dude" in them.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Merry Naqba

Once upon a time, the Arabs of Eretz Yisrael annually commemorated the "Naqba" ("day of the catastrophe" / annual day of defeat) on May 15th, the day after the English date of Israel's declared independence in 1948. These days, it seems that the Naqba celebrations have been changed to directly clash with Israel's Yom Ha'Atzmaut (Independence Day) which is commemorated based on the Hebrew day (5th of Iyar).

Yesterday [Sunday], two hundred left-wing activists and Israeli Arabs marched on Sunday from the Jerusalem Theater square to the Nature Museum on Emek Refaim Street in the capital marking 60 years since “Naqba Day", or “catastrophe” of Israel's inception in 1948. (YNET)

This past Friday, Naqba activists led protesters from Nazareth towards the deserted ruins of the village of Suffurriye – today's Zippori.

Across the road, a peaceful group of Israeli volunteers from the "If you will it" organization were enjoying a Yom Ha'Atzmaut picnic, yet their raised Israeli flag raised the ire of the Naqba marchers.

The situation quickly deteriorated into a full scale Naqba riot. The police claim that the demonstrators wild incitement seeking provocation caused the riots. However, the rally attendants, including Hadash Chairman MK Mohammad Barakeh said that the riots were caused because the police did allow the rally-goers to properly disperse.

Northern Region District Commander Shimon Koren, Brigadier Zohar Dvir and 3 other police officers injured, as well as a few Arab demonstrators, including Balad’s MK Wasil Taha (pictured above). [YNET]

Just one thought; I'm very thankful that this isn't Israel's "Naqba" and the Arab's "celebration." I doubt they would have let us live long enough to commemorate anything. Israel's Old City of Jerusalem from 1948 to 1967 is a perfect example of what would have happened...

The Purple Parrot came up with a much better name for her Naqba post, "N Na Naq Naqba"...(where every day is Naqba day.)

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Ani Iparon Redux; "I am a pencil"**

Thanks RafiG for the following anecdote (and hat-tip to DE for pointing it to me)

Standing for the Tzfira

I just heard (second-hand) this great Yom Ha'Zikaron anecdote about standing for the siren...

Introduction: the Hebrew word for siren is tzfira

This American seminary girl was returning to Israel from her Pesach trip home to the USA (visiting her family). She happened to return to Israel on the night of Yom Ha'Zikaron, though she knew nothing about that.

Anyway, so she is in the taxi on the way to Jerusalem from the airport. The taxi driver stops the taxi and says, "tzfira". The clock strikes 8 and the siren begins to wail. They stand outside of the taxi, and the sem girl starts shuckling and says the Bracha of "Al Sfiras Ha'Omer" and counts that days Omer.

After that she recounts how beautiful it is that in Israel, they sound a siren to announce the Sefira and everyone counts at the same time.

For information on the Ani Iparon -- "I'm a pencil" sem girl statement, see AirTime's post here.


Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

What the heck is going on in Lebanon?!

Picture via BloggingBeirut

My good friend "Lurker" and I have each missed major historical events as they took place;

• I told him about Iraq's invasion of Kuwait (he missed that one, but then again, the NY Times didn't appreciate its significance the first day either).
• He told me about some big event in Russia back in August, 1991.
• I tagged him back this past Wednesday, and told him about Hizbollah's military coup in Lebanon.
• He tagged me back on Friday, that Lebanon had fallen. Well, almost...but it's only a matter of hours to days before Lebanon is entirely under Hizbollah's control.
  

The Beirut Blogger calls Hizbollah, the "opposition" -- yet the combination of Amal and Hizbollah has taken over the Beirut airport, the media, burned down newspaper offices, and Lebanon is now in mayhem, with people fleeing in all directions.

The Lebanon Star reports from Beirut: Lebanon's governing coalition, the March 14 Forces, accused Hizbullah of staging a military coup against the state and said that Hizbullah's arms have become illegitimate after they were used against their fellow Lebanese citizens. "Hizbullah's claim that its arms were only targeted at Israel have proved false and invalid in the past two days, which witnessed the uses of such arms against the Lebanese people," the statement said.

Despite the dire warnings on the United States of America Embassy website in Beirut;

As stated in the current Travel Warning for Lebanon, the Department of State continues to strongly urge that Americans defer travel to Lebanon and that American citizens in Lebanon consider carefully the risks of remaining.

In a crisis situation, American citizens are responsible for arranging commercial or private means of transportation to depart Lebanon. American citizens wishing to depart Lebanon are urged to do so, keeping in mind that options are currently limited.

Major roads to Beirut International Airport remain blocked, and there is only limited airline service at present. Violent clashes in several areas in and around Beirut have been reported, and it is still not known when the airport road will re-open and normal air transport services will resume. The main road to Damascus remains blocked.

American citizens wanting to depart may wish to consider chartering private watercraft to Cyprus. Until such time as travel services out of Lebanon become available, the U.S. Embassy urges American citizens to ensure they have an adequate supply of food, water and other essential items and to remain safely inside their homes. Americans are encouraged to review their travel plans following resumption of normal air services.

the embassy website claims that it's still business as usual...sort of.

The U.S. Embassy remains open for business; however, Nonimmigrant Visa processing has been suspended except under special circumstances. American Citizen Services and Immigrant Visa processing are functioning normally. American citizens are urged to avoid the airport road and any other areas where demonstrators are gathered, and to monitor the local media for information regarding the security situation.

However, Israeli websites claim that the US has already started evacuating its personnel from the Beirut embassy.

Of course, nothing could be worse for Israel than the timing of Lebanon's take-over by Hizbollah, than the current (and latest) Olmert scandal -- which is paralyzing Israel from effectively preparing for the new reality. The only message the government could send out was far from reassuring...

The latest upheaval in Lebanon found its way to the government meeting Sunday, as Military Intelligence chief Major-General Amos Yadlin briefed the ministers on the ongoings across the northern border. Israel, said Yadlin, must be prepared for the power shift in Lebanon: "Hizbullah's use of weapons inside Beirut send a very different kind of message… We have to be pragmatic, but there is no need for hysteria."

Vice Premier Haim Ramon added that "we have to realize that Lebanon is a Hizbullah state. Everything happening there is their doing… The country is ruled by the Hizbullah and the reigning government is meaningless, its fiction."

Internal Security Minister Avi Dichter reiterated, "Hizbullah maintains its hold on Lebanon, without the responsibility of running matters of state. This creates a real difficulty for Israel, which can't work against the (emanating) regional terror."

"We are constantly briefed on the situation in Beirut, and since Israel may be affected by what is going on over there, we are somewhat concerned… Israel, however, cannot lead the international response (to the events), which is why we are still refraining from any official move." (YNET)

The bottom line is that Lebanon is now going the same route as Gaza (or vice-versa). Both will be ruled by Islamic fundamentalist groups that are proxies of anti-Israel fundamentalism. Both are dangerous to Israel's security. Both will be active battle fronts against Israel -- and will play off each other; escalation on one front will bring about escalation on the next, making it even more difficult for Israel to respond to the ongoing missile strikes from Gaza (or Katyusha attacks up north)

The Middle East has definitely just taken a new turn for the worse.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Haveil Havalim #165 - The Best Of The Jewish/Israeli Blogosphere

The latest roundup of the Jewish/Israeli Blogosphere is ready for your consumption. You can find it at the following link:

Haveil Havalim #165 Happy 60th Birthday Israel!

P.S. Strangely there are virtually no waffle references.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

A prophecy fulfilled?

וְאִם לֹא תוֹרִישׁוּ אֶת יֹשְׁבֵי הָאָרֶץ מִפְּנֵיכֶם, וְהָיָה אֲשֶׁר תּוֹתִירוּ מֵהֶם לְשִׂכִּים בְּעֵינֵיכֶם וְלִצְנִינִם בְּצִדֵּיכֶם; וְצָרְרוּ אֶתְכֶם עַל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתֶּם יֹשְׁבִים בָּהּ.
במדבר ל"ג:נ"ה --

"And if you do not drive out the inhabitants of the Land from before you, then those of them whom you allow to remain will become spikes in your eyes and thorns in your sides; and they will harass you upon the Land in which you dwell."

-- Numbers 33:55


"In the beginning, in 1948, we were 150,000 Palestinians; and today, we are 1,300,000 thorns in their sides and rocks on their chests."

-- Sheikh Kamal Khatib, Israeli Islamic Movement, Northern Branch, Deputy Head, Naqba rally, Kafr Kana, Israel, Friday, May 9, 2008

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

The Laundry Man

Morris Talansky, of course, is the suddenly famous American Jewish businessman who funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars to Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, currently under police investigation. The payments were made during Olmert's tenures as Jerusalem Mayor, and later as Minister of Industry and Trade, and were disguised as contributions made to the "New Jerusalem Foundation"*, a charitable organization founded by Olmert, and under his direct control. Talansky operated as the NJF's main U.S. contact and treasurer.

Who, exactly, is Morris Talansky, and whose interests does he represent? Well, among other things, Talansky is an ordained rabbi, with semicha from YU, and he served once in a pulpit position in Portland, Oregon. He later went into business, and became embroiled in many conflicts and lawsuits with his various associates. These conficts are marked by allegations of violent threats and extortion, and a review of the court records paints the picture of a shady loan shark that seems to be a character right out of an episode of The Sopranos. From the New York Times:

At least two of the lawsuits involving Mr. Talansky contain allegations that he or people he enlisted made threats in the course of collecting debts or resolving business conflicts.

He sued one of his accusers, Richard Penzer, for libel in 1995 in state court on the grounds that the accusations had jeopardized Mr. Talansky’s longtime job raising money for Shaare Zedek Hospital in Jerusalem. The case was settled three years later, when Mr. Talansky accepted $60,000 and a one-line apology from Mr. Penzer.

Initially at odds with Mr. Talansky over a real estate deal, Mr. Penzer had sent donors and officials associated with Shaare Zedek letters in 1994 asserting that Mr. Talansky had threatened him "with the expressed goal of extorting money".

Court records include a sworn statement from a police file, dated January 1992, in which a Long Island man said he had met Mr. Talansky one night at Scores, a topless bar in Manhattan, and tried to help him collect a debt from Mr. Penzer.

"He began to tell me about how he took a devastating loss of approximately $2.8 million in a real estate deal that went bad," the Long Island man, Michael Sciotto, told the police. "He was swindled and he described it as a setup."

The statement continued, "I told him I would talk to Mr. Penzer and see if I could shake him up a little and possibly could get Talansky’s money back."

In another lawsuit, Mr. Talansky sued a man who he said promised him "substantial interest at low or no risk" on a $300,000 loan he made in 1998 to the Forgotten Woman, a retail chain that went bankrupt three months after his loan.

After much litigation, the defendant, Frederick Schulman, prevailed in court on the fraud counts but also made a counterclaim accusing Mr. Talansky of sending "thugs" to collect money from him.

Mr. Talansky replied that he had sold the right to collect part of the debt to a third party and could not be held responsible. The judge rejected Mr. Schulman’s request for summary judgment on the extortion charge, but said he could pursue it in a trial. The parties eventually settled, according to a lawyer in the case.

Olmert and his sponsor, Morris "Laundry Man" Talansky

Using the "New Jerusalem Foundation" as a conduit, Talansky has been funneling money to Olmert for nine years. But Olmert isn't the only policitian Talansky has helped out: Over the last two decades, he has made generous financial contributions to the campaigns of Mayor Rudy Guilianni (Republican, 2000), President George W. Bush (Republican, 2003), Senator Edward M. Kennedy (Democrat, 1992), House Speaker Thomas S. Foley (Democrat, 1994) President Bill Clinton (Democrat, 1995). An equal-opportunity contributor, indeed.

In her written logs of Olmert's payments from Talansky, Shula Zaken, Olmert's personal secretary (recently placed under house arrest), refers to Talansky as "The Laundry Man".

So Talansky is a colorful charcter indeed: A money-laundering loan-shark Orthodox rabbi who uses thugs to "shake up" his creditors, who meets with his business associates in topless bars, and who took on the role, for nearly a decade, of Ehud Olmert's patron.

But there's more to Talansky than this, much more.

Morris Talansky is a founding partner, and a major shareholder, of ImageSat, an Israeli company that rents out access to spy satellites and their high-resolution images -- often to governments, for purposes of military intelligence. ImageSat is enjoined by an agreement with the Israeli Defense Ministry from selling access or data to Arab states at war with Israel, or to the "rogue states" of Iran, Cuba, and North Korea. However, Talansky and his group of fellow shareholders are anxious for a quick return on their investment, and are less than happy with these pesky restrictions. They have attempted to skirt the ban on sales to Iran by negotiating a deal with notorious Venezuelan strongman Hugo Chavez, a close ally of Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmedinejad. Chavez is a radical Marxist and anti-American, and like Ahmedinejad, has called for the destruction of Israel. Talansky's associate and fellow ImageSat shareholder Stephen Wilson began negotiating a large-scale deal with Chavez in 1999, and even moved to Venezuela in 2001. By 2002, he secured Chavez's interest in a multi-million dollar deal with ImageSat for spy satellite access.

But to the chagrin of Wilson, Talansky, and their fellow investors, ImageSat -- together with its parent companies, Israel Aircraft Industries and Elbit Systems -- balked at the deal for obvious security reasons. Enraged, Talansky and friends filed suit against ImageSat, in a bid to force them to provide Chavez with the spy data.

In the lawsuit, the investors also charge ImageSat with blocking similar lucrative deals they tried to make with Angola and Russia, also countries closely allied with Israel's enemies.

So while Talansky was fighting to circumvent Israel's security restrictions on ImageSat, he was also giving hundreds of thousands of dollars to Israel's Minister of Industry and Trade, Ehud Olmert. It will be interesting to see whether the ImageSat conflict plays any role in the current investigation and expected indictment.

To call Talansky a hilul Hashem would be a gross understatement. As an orthodox Rabbi who, at best, operates in the gray zone of the law, he is certainly an awful embarrassment. But Talansky is far more than just a loan shark with a yarmulkeh: He is a man who does not hesitate to place his own narrow financial interests over the interests of Israel's security and the survival of his fellow Jews. It's very easy to understand why Olmert chose the patronage of such a like-minded person.


* The media seems a bit confused about whether to refer to this organization as "The New Jerusalem Foundation" or "The New Jerusalem Fund". See here for details.


Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Between Two Worlds

Now that busy season is over for me, I can do things like post to Jameel's blog when he's not paying attention - woo!

But I'm really here to tell you that y'all would appreciate this post by Stam entitled Between Two Worlds. Excerpt:

Growing up in two schools with very different outlooks on this issue has left me a little confused. On one hand i do feel its important to observe/celebrate these occasions, but with the "yeshivish" world so against anything "Tzioni" (including Bamba) I feel that by caring, i'm doing something "wrong". The Gush Katif/Shomron situation was similar. Nothing was mentioned in the BY high schools or seminaries, while the "Tzioni" schools shared the news and kept their students updated. We were in Israel and didn't even have a clue about what was going on!

I remember finding a poster when I was in seminary that said "Yehudim Lo Migrashim Yehudim". I took it to my Aim HaBayit and asked her what "migrashim" meant. She looked at the poster and then she looked at me and she said "we stay out of this, throw that away".

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Israel's Youngest Fallen Soldier

Cross-posted to 60 Bloggers; 60 bloggers celebrating Israel's 60th Birthday

Despite the merriment of Israel's 60th Birthday, I came across something so heart stopping, so simply unbelievable, that I had to blog it.

I found a record of the State of Israel's youngest victim killed in action on behalf of Israel's war for rebirth and survival.

Israel's Ministry of Defense houses the "Izkor" Remembrance Project Web Site, which documents every single soldier to have died for Israel. Following is the story of Nissim Gini, wounded in the battle defending the Old city of Jerusalem on May 27th, 1948, and he succumbed on the following day, May 28th, 1948.

This is his story (translated by me)

Nissim Gini, son of Miriam and Yitzchak, born in 1938 in the old city of Jerusalem, where he lived his entire short life from beginning to end. He learned in school till the Israeli War of Independence in 1948 and Siege against the Old City of Jerusalem interrupted his routine life.

When the battles started, he volunteered, as did his young friends, to defend his city and birthplace -- and demanded a position [in the army]. Without telephones or wireless radios to communication between military positions in the winding alleyways, he was given the task of being the communication "runner" between positions -- which he did with adult responsibly and faithfully amidst hailstorms of bullets and the thundering of bombs.

He requested a handgun in case he be faced by an Arab solider, but his request was rejected. On the 27 of May, 1948, when one of the Jewish positions fell, he was seriously wounded, and he died a painful day later on the 28th of May, 1948, the 19th of Iyar, 5708. He was buried in the Old city.

He was ten years old.

The youngest to fall in Israel's battles.

His name is inscribed on the monument at the Har Herzel military cemetery for the victims of the battle for the Old city of Jerusalem, and he was reburied on Har HaZeitim, the Mount of Olives.

This Independence Day, remember him and the rest of Israel's soldiers, killed and wounded so that we can continue the dream.

Israel: Live the dream.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Unapologetically Zionist

Israel from Space...

Google (co.il) -- honoring Israel's 60th...

Israeli Lefists were not so thrilled with Israel's birthday, and vandalized this JNF park...

And Olmert keeps on going...Reworded...

An exhilirating pictoral post from Mevaseret Zion on Israel's 60th...

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Memorial Day: Mourn, Comfort and Remember

The air-raid siren's blare last night at 8:00 PM found me as I was driving home on the mountain roads of the Shomron.

I pulled over to the side of the road, turned on the car's hazard lights, got out and stood next to my car under the dark sky. Other cars also stopped, their driver's got out, and we stood silently listening to the siren.

So what do you think about during the siren? Once upon a time, I used to say tehillim to myself to honor the memory of the IDF soldiers who fell defending Israel. Yet the one minute siren is so short, many more thoughts last night reverberated in my head.

The first time I heard the siren in wartime was when the scuds fell in January 1991; wearing a gas mask and watching TV reports of where the Iraqi rockets landed....were they chemical or conventional warheads?

Sirens in Tzefat during the Lebanon war 2 years ago when Hizbollah Katyusha rockets landed around the clock, scorching the Galil.

A terror attack in Hevron's Mearat HaMachpela this past sukkot.

Soldiers who died fighting for Israel -- so many funerals in the past 17 years. Some soldiers I knew personally, some I admired from afar, others were fellow members of Kitot Konenuyot, the counter-terror units that respond to terror infiltrations.

And then there are the civilian casualties. Israel's Memorial Day also commemorates the victims of Arab terror; the bus bombings, stabbings, shootings, infiltrations, kidnappings, hijackings...the rocks and Molotov cocktails as well. Friends, neighbors, and strangers killed and wounded -- at the wrong place at the wrong time.

All those thoughts packed into instant.

The siren's wail ebbed away.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Front Runner: Tzippi Livni

With Prime Minister Ehud Olmert's chances of political survival diminishing by the hour, the White House Staff has reportedly been instructed by President Bush and Condoleeza Rice to treat Israel's Foreign Minister Tzippi Livni as Olmert's replacement. (Scoop here in Hebrew)

This doesn't bode well for Israel.

My esteemed blogging colleague, Likud analyst par-excellence Professor Ben Chorin has said of Livni, "Tzippi Livni -- whose utter lack of charm, grace and charisma is occasionally mistaken for intelligence..."

Adding more credence to Olmert's demise, PA head Muhammad Abbas believes that the negotiations with Olmert are going to end up having been a "big waste of time". (YNET)

I'll drink to that.


Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Bypassing the Gag-order; Olmert Scandal #237

The iron-clad, gag-order against the on-going investigation of Israel's PM Ehud Olmert is showing signs of rusting away.

Two leading newspapers in Israel have already broken the order and have printed some of the details surrounding the investigation.

However!

Since this blog is hosted on a US server via Google, I will now break the gag-order and show you the many as yet unpublished details of the investigation (which have been confirmed as accurate by Israel Channel 2 Radio, Army Radio and others)...

Presenting; the investigation against PM Ehud Olmert, scandal 237...

NY Post: May 6, 2008 -- A Long Island mogul is at the center of a sensational bribery scandal that could bring down embattled Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert, The Post has learned.

Millionaire financier Morris Talansky - who runs an investment firm out of his tony home in Woodmere - allegedly passed money to Olmert while the politician was mayor of Jerusalem in the '90s, sources said.

In a highly unusual move, Israeli authorities have barred the country's media from publishing Talansky's name - revealed now in The Post - saying it could hamper their investigation. Israeli media has referred only to the involvement of an "American businessman."

Talansky is apparently set to sing to Israeli authorities about his alleged role in the scheme, sources said.

"It looks serious, and it looks like they have a state witness" in Talansky, one source said.

Talansky - a philanthropist and political contributor to everyone from Rudy Giuliani to Bill Clinton - is in Jerusalem, where he has an apartment, preparing to head to a closed-door court hearing as early as today, sources said.

The 75-year-old was earlier questioned about the alleged scheme almost immediately after arriving in the country for Passover, and he implicated Olmert, sources have said.

It was unclear what the alleged payments to Olmert were for, but sources said they involved hefty amounts of cash.

Talansky repeatedly appears - sometimes under the nickname "The Laundry Man" - in the logs of financial dealings kept by Olmert's longtime aide, Shula Zakan, a source said.

Olmert was grilled by investigators Friday. He has vehemently denied any wrongdoing.

The allegations are only the latest in a string of woes for Olmert, who has battled past charges of government corruption and questionable personal business practices.

"But this time seems very serious, and it seems eventually, we don't know if it will be days, weeks or months, in the end, he may not be able to continue to be prime minister," one source said.

A man answering the phone at Talansky's multimillion-dollar mansion in Woodmere yesterday said, "He's not available."

Talansky lists himself as CEO of the Global Resources Group, a self-described financial-investment firm.

Additional reporting by Kieran Crowley

Let's see; More on Morris...The Huffington Post found that Morris gave $1000 to the Republican party and $0 to the Democrats.

The best take on this so far is from Olmert's people themselves; They claim the investigation and scandal emerged because of the doings of the "enemies of peace" (ie, rightwingers).

Just as Olmert was about to reach a "historic" deal with Syria and the Palestinians, someone has to go ahead and dredge up these silly claims and petty crimes. Currently on YNET in Hebrew...will get it in English soon.

Developing story/scandal.



Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Learn To Shoot

-- Advertisement --

Like most Rapid Response Teams in the Judea region (not to mention other special security forces), I’ve done some training at the Caliber 3 shooting range.

Let me tell you, compared to most IDF training bases, this place is heaven. Soda machines, bathrooms, running water, concrete floors, and ceiling netting (for shade). You couldn’t ask for a nicer outdoor range. (And if you’ve only shot in an indoor range, you’re in for a surprise, it’s a completely different experience).

Anyway, the owners of the Caliber 3 Shooting Range have opened up their training services to the general public.

They are offering a special 2 hour package for tourists visiting Israel (or you wanna-be settlers in Beit Shemesh).

The package includes explanations of the security situations Israelis face, examples of different anti-Terrorist techniques, and of course the fun part - Shooting pistols and machine guns.

The program is open to individuals, groups, and families. You can see from the photos on their site that everyone is having a great time.

Of course they’re having a great time. They shooting M-16s and Glock pistols.

Why do you think half the people on the RRTs join up in the first place?

So head on over to their website and learn first hand what it is like to protect a settlement and fight a terrorist.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

How Much Would You Pay for Art?

Ha’aretz claims that their probe indicates that the current Olmert investigation revolves around Olmert using his position to help promote his wife’s artwork and art career.

I’m not much of a modern art critic, but how much would you pay for these, and would you really want them in your house?


(Gads, I don't even want to see it on the blog!)

My wife has another theory.

Forget million dollar discounts on Cremioux. This involves a much better way of buying financing a candidate. Buy the politician's wife’s artwork in exchange for favors. (And we're not talking pennies here).

And seriously, after looking at those two samples of her work, can there be any doubt in anyone’s mind what the buyers were really buying for all that money?

You read it here (actually hopefully on JoeSettler) first.


Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Haveil Havalim # 164 - no names edition

Snoopy has the scoop: Haveil Havalim # 164 - no names edition.

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Updated Prayer for the State of Israel (60th birthday edition)

Finally.

Despite having been annoyed at many of Uri Orbach's columns lately, I fully endorse the latest "nusach" of the prayer for the welfare of the State of Israel. (Translated here)

אבינו שבשמים צור ישראל וגואלו, ברך את מדינת ישראל ראשית צמיחת גאולתנו. הגן עליה משריה, ראשיה ויועציה, מקבלניה, מסוחריה, מכוכבניה, מקבצניה, מעיתונאיה, מפקידיה וממאכעריה, ושלח אורך ואמיתך לכל מדינאיה ורבניה, שופטיה ומלומדיה ותקנם בעצה טובה מלפניך.

חזק את ידי מגיני ארץ קודשנו והנחילם ישועה מהראש הקטן, ומהנרגנות ומההשתמטות ומהסרבנות, והצילם מפקודות לא חוקיות בעליל ומפקודות חוקיות לא בעליל, ותן בלבם מסירות ואחריות ודבקות, ועטרת ניצחון תעטרם.

הצל את עמך בני ישראל מכל קטנוניות ובכיינות ומשביעות רצון מוגזמת ומטיפשות ומאטימות, ומכל פגע רע וטעם רע ולשון הרע ושנאת חינם. הגן על מדינת ישראל מפני אלו הקמים עליה מבחוץ ומפני אלו הקמים עליה מבפנים, ושמור עליה מחולביה, ממנצליה וממשמיציה. ואת אחינו כל בית ישראל פקוד נא בכל מפלגותיהם ועדותיהם ודעותיהם, וברכם בהבנה כי מדינת ישראל היא אברת חסדך, אורך וישועתך, ושלח אל מדינת ישראל את אהבתם וכבודם, יראתם ודאגתם של תושביה וברכם במעשה ידיה.

אבינו שבשמיים, מנע עקירה מנחלתך ושנאת חינם מבניך, ותן תבונה לשמאלניך ואחריות למתנחליך (ובמקצת בתי כנסיות נהגו בנוסח הפוך), וכבוד ואחווה והתחשבות והבנה בין כל מאמיניך וכופריך ככתוב: אם יהיה נידחך בקצה השמים משם יקבצך ה' אלוקיך ומשם יקחך.

והופע בהדר גאון עוזך על כל יושבי תבל ארצך ויאמר כל אשר נשמה באפו: איזו מדינה, איזו מדינה, איזו מדינה, מיוחדת במינה, אמן סלה.

ומוסיפין ביום העצמאות השישים נוסח משולב זה:

מי שברך אמותינו הקדושות והטהורות שרה רבקה רחל ולאה, הוא יברך את החולה מדינת ישראל בת העם היהודי בעבור שכל היהודים מתפללים בעבורה ויתנו שישים שקלים לבית הכנסת. בשכר זה הקדוש ברוך הוא יימלא רחמים עליה להחלימה ולהחזיקה ולהחיותה וישלח לה מהרה רפואה שלמה בתש"ח איבריה ובתשס"ח גידיה בתוך שאר חולי ישראל, רפואת הנפש ורפואת הגוף, יום עצמאות הוא מלזעוק ורפואה קרובה לבוא השתא בעגלא ובזמן קריב ונאמר אמן.

ולאחר התפילה נהגו ישראל לומר משנה זו ביום העצמאות (מסכת קיטורים):
כל שלא אמר אחד משלושה משפטים אלו בערב יום העצמאות לא יצא ידי חובתו:
תאמין לי, כולם מושחתים; תאמין לי, זאת לא המדינה שחלמנו עליה; ותאמין לי, אין בשביל מי להצביע. וחכמים אומרים: יצא ידי חובתו, אבל יצא פראייר .

Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Reminder: This Shabbat -- Shlissel Challa

This Shabbat -- the one right after Pesach is when many Jews bake "Shlissel Challah" -- Challah in the shape of a key (or a key baked inside the Challah). It's considered a segula for all sorts of good things...

Orthomom (remember her?) found all the sources last year:

1. Based on "Pitchi Li Achoti, Ra'ayati..." ("Open up, my darling..."--Shir HaShirim 5:2), on which the Medrash states "Pitchu li petach ke-chudo shel machat...," (cf. Shi HaShirim Rabbah 5, s.v. "Kol Dodi Dofek") = something like "Open your hearts (in teshuvah) like the eye of the needle, and I (God) will open the rest like [a very large
opening].

2. According to Kabbalah on Pesach the gates to heaven were open, and following Pesach the lower gates are shut, and it's up to us to open them again, therefor on the 1st Shabbat we put the key on the challah to show that through the mitzvah of Shabbat we are opening the locks [original source?].

3. In the desert the Jewish people ate from the manna until after Pesach upon entering the land (with the bringing of the Omer, see: Josh. 5:11), at which point the ate from the produce of the land, and became dependant on their livelihood for the first time (now they had no manna). The key in the challah after Pesach is a request the God should open the Sha'arei Parnasah (gates of livelihood). Alternatively, the manna began to fall in the month of Iyyar, and this Shabbat is always Shabbat Mevarchim Iyyar.

See: Sefer Ta'amei HaMinhagim, pp. 249-50.
See: Encyclopedia Judaica, vol. 6, pp. 1419-20 for a photo of a shluss challah (and other "special" challot). It seems (from both of the above sources) that the minhag was to bake the key on top of the challah not inside (a la the old jail break trick).

Josh Waxman in the parsha blog also had more on the subject.

But the source I'm familar with is from the Sefer Ta'amei Minhagim that says it's based on the pasuk, 'יפתח ה' לך את אוצרו הטוב את השמים לתת מטר ארצך בעתו'

Anyway - we bake a key into the challah. Much easier that braiding the dough into a key.

Shabbat Shalom!

PS: Hat-tip to CK from Jewlicious for the Challah Hu Akbar graphic (apparently :)


Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Holocaust Related Posts

Were Jews really made into candles and buried in Israel?

Every Person Has a Name

From Rabbi Natan Slifkin (Zoo Torah)

In lieu of an essay, I thought that I would refer you to two fascinating stories of zoos that hid Jews during the Holocaust.

One is the Artis Zoo in Amsterdam; you can watch a brief video about its rescue of Jews.

The other is the Warsaw Zoo, whose rescue of Jews has been novelized in a fascinating new book by Diane Ackerman, "The Zookeeper's Wife"

"In both accounts, the unique features of a zoo made it possible for the very brave zoo directors to successfully hide people in the grounds -- both accounts are extraordinary stories of ingenuity and bravery amidst the darkness."

Finally, the obligatory video. This is rather graphic, but crucial history for everyone to see.



And this video's from Jewlicious -- the siren this morning in Jerusalem, and how everything just stopped.



Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד

Special Israel 60th Birthday Junk Food Edition

Hey. You got your peanut butter in my chocolate. No, YOU got your chocolate in my peanut butter.

Reese's Peanut Butter Cups?

Guess again. In honor of Israel's 60th birthday next week, Osem is creating a new version of the Israeli Classic Bamba Junk Food -- Bamba with creamy chocolate nougat inside.

Sorry people, it sounds totally gross.


Wherever I am, my blog turns towards Eretz Yisrael טובה הארץ מאד מאד