The Zionist Conspiracy |
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A clandestine undertaking on behalf of Israel, the Jets and the Jews. 
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Thursday, August 31, 2006
More Random Musings 1. After last night's fantasy football draft (see below), I met some old friends for beers, something I rarely do anymore. In the old days (1997-2000), when I worked with these guys during my first three years after law school, and was single and living on the Upper West Side, I'd often hang out after work for a few drinks. On too many occasions, I'd go straight to the local kollel to learn even before eating dinner, likely with an obvious buzz. The East Village place we went to last night solves the problem that those who keep kosher have, of being unable to eat and drink at the same time. They allow patrons to bring their own food. Alas, the alcohol content of the European beers on tap there - three of which I consumed - is quite high, and I've been too buzzed to sleep. Fortunately, I made it home (two trains and a bus) safely, and only do this kind of thing very occasionally. 2. I'm too tired to find the links, but several bloggers have recently posted about KOE's hiring of a woman to be its spiritual leader. Whether KOE is, as some say, a shul following the values of Union For Traditional Judaism, or "right-wing conservative," as Gil calls it, or, as I believe, more in a twilight zone between right-wing conservative and left-wing modern Orthodox, one thing it is not is an Orthodox Jewish shul. Indeed, KOE does not identify with any denomination. When I lived on the Upper West Side, a number of people who identified as Orthodox and who would not go to a Conservative shul went to KOE. Indeed, many are quite surprised when told that KOE is not Orthodox. The Upper West Side, and places like Cambridge, MA, are unique in that there are a large number of young people, some who grew up modern Orthodox and some from traditional Conservative backgrounds, who socialize and are friendly, and therefore daven together. 3. Living in Queens has its occasional benefits. There's the short trip home from the airport. There's also the US Open. Considering how much money is invested, and how much land that used to be part of Flushing Meadows Park is used so that tennis comes to New York for two weeks a year, it is incredible how awful the parking situation is at the US Open. In the past, without a parking permit, one could easily park at Shea Stadium. Now, with Shea's lot under construction in preparation for the new stadium, for $13, you have a chance - but only a chance - of parking a couple of miles away on the mud in a field in the park. Then, you get to take a bus to the tennis center. 4. Yesterday we held The Zionist Conspiracy's first fantasy football draft. My competitors came well prepared, and drafted well. The first rule of fantasy football is that running backs rule. By the time I drafted, with the fifth of six picks, the NFL's top four running backs were all taken. I therefore adopted a contrarian strategy of drafting the NFL's top quarterback (Payton Manning) and two top wide receivers. I passed on the best receiver, Steve Smith, due to concerns about his leg injuries. I also drafted the only two Jets taken - Jonathan Vilma - who I accidentally drafted in the fifth round (I intended to draft him in round 7), and Laveranues Coles in the 18th round. Jetsphan drafted no Jets, while Elster drafted Eli Manning, Tiki Barber, and Jeremy Shockey. Henceforth, Elster shall be known as Giantsphan. Most made their picks very quickly, and we managed to complete a 20 round draft in less than 50 minutes, allowing me to finish my work and head downtown. Tuesday, August 29, 2006
Update 1. I'm getting crushed at work and am about to lose my weekends at home, as a result of which blogging has been light and will likely remain so for a while. I haven't even been able to prepare for tomorrow night's fantasy football draft against the likes of MoC, Elster and Jetsphan, all of whom pick before me. All I'll have are a list and my instincts. Guys, save some players for me, please. 2. Yesterday, Harry Maryles posted on the subject of charedi draft dodging in Israel. As if on cue, American charedim promptly chimed in to offer the standard nonsensical defenses of charedi refusal to serve the defense of their country. This issue is among several that prevents me from identifying as charedi, even though, in certain areas, my views are closer to the charedim than to those referred to as "modern Orthodox." There is simply no justification for the fact that 40 year old out of shape non-charedi Israeli men are called to fight in Lebanon and Gaza while young charedim in their 20's peddle cell phones and potato kugel in Bnei Brak. 3. Getting back to Jetsphan, I won't go back and quote his insistence on calling Chad Pennington irrelevant and his refusal to discuss Pennington's future with the Jets. Whether Pennington can stay healthy is questionable, as is whether he or Kellen Clemens is the Jets quarterback of the future. Pennington returns to quarterback while the Jets lack a top wide receiver or running back, and will start two rookies on offensive line. If he can lead the Jets to a wildcard playoff berth - a longshot even if he has a good season - he'll have proven his critics wrong. 4. Last week, MoC expressed his pride about his daughter having become "a rabid Yankees fan over the course of the summer." MoC concluded: "What more could a father ask for." My initial reaction was astonishment. MoC is a big Mets fan. Why would he be so excited about his daughter becoming a fan of the other team? I get that MoC is excited that his daughter now shares his passion for baseball, even if she picked the wrong team. My father is a Yankees fan, and in recent years I've made an effort to buy tickets for us to go to a Yankees playoff game, so I understand the idea of family members on opposite sides of the New York baseball divide. Still, I can't completely get past this. What about sharing the history of a team? How can MoC, whose best baseball memories are from 1969 and 1986, of times when the Yankees were as irrelevant as the Mets were dominant, be so filled with pride when his daughter wants to watch videos from 1996? After decades of sticking with a team that has endured long periods of famine, how can he even relate to the notion of suddenly jumping on the bandwagon of the despised Yankees? Wednesday, August 23, 2006
Refuah Sheleima Harry Maryles writes that his three year old grandsoon has been diagnosed with bone cancer. Harry, his grandson, and his entire family will of course be in our thoughts and prayers. Harry's grandson's name is Ruvein ben Tova Chaya. May he have a quick refuah sheleima. Monday, August 21, 2006
Prime Minister Olmert Blames Former Deputy Prime Minister Olmert Prime Minister Olmert today explained that his predecessors were at fault for failing to counter Hezbollah. Olmert said: We knew for years that there was a great danger, but for some reason we didn't translate that understanding into action, like we just did. We knew what Iran was doing, what Syria was doing, in arming Hezbollah. We acted as if we didn't know. Olmert might have a point, except that he was deputy prime minister in Ariel Sharon's government. Why didn't he, in his role as a senior cabinet minister and deputy prime minister, emphasize the danger emanating from Lebanon? Mets and Jets Notes 1. Guillermo Mota? What is it about washed up relievers that so excites Mets GM Omar Minaya? Mota has an ERA of 6.21 and has not pitched for a month. How is picking Mota up and sending Heath Bell down yet again going to help the Mets? 2. If Tom Glavine is out for the season, the Mets should - but won't - again consider placing Aaron Heilman into the starting rotation. 3. The only running back I was hoping the Jets would trade for was Atlanta's TJ Duckett. Instead, the Jets traded a 2007 draft pick (believed to be a 4th rounder, and possibly higher based on performance) for Kevan Barlow. I don't think I like this move. Barlow is not likely the Jets running back of the future, so why trade a pick in what looks like a rebuilding season? The Jets will need their 2007 picks for help at wide receiver and defensive line, among other positions. Then again, I'm of the view that in almost any season, with some breaks the vast majority of teams can contend for the wildcard. Who knows, maybe Barlow will run for 1200 yards, Chad Pennington will stay healthy, and the Jets offensive line will come together more quickly than expected. With the acquisition of Barlow and Derrick Blaylock's solid performance in Saturday night's game, I now wouldn't be surprised to see Cedric Houston be cut. 4. The media compares Jets head coach Eric Mangini to his mentors, Bill Belichick and Bill Parcells. In some ways, Mangini is similar to those coaches, but he is showing a much softer side now in excusing Jets QB Chad Pennington so that Pennington can spend time with his hospitalized father. Pennington will almost certainly be the Jets starting quarterback, and he needs to practice and play in the pre-season to get back into playing condition, so it's interesting to see Mangini allow football to take a backseat. 5. Everyone has assumed that the Jets will run a 3-4 defense this season, but on Saturday night, they actually used the 4-3 quite a bit. Overall, this team is still better suited to the 4-3, so hopefully the Jets will, at least in 2006, employ a hybrid defense. 6. Cornerback Justin Miller was awful. If he keeps playing like this, Miller not only won't start, he will at best be the Jets' dime back. Friday, August 18, 2006
They All Must Go: Purge Israel's Leadership Between the incompetence of Ehud Olmert, Tzipi Livni and Amir Peretz, the sexual harassment charges against Justice Minister Chaim Ramon, the impending investigation of Olmert for corruption, and the indictment of Kadima's Tzachi Hanegbi, it is quite clear that Israel's political leadership is a complete disgrace. The news that President Moshe Katsav is under investigation for sexual assault further undermines confidence in the nation's "leaders." Most outrageous are the reports from reservists who served in Lebanon that they not only lacked proper equipment and were poorly trained, but that they went days with almost no food or water. Some IDF soldiers had to break into Lebanese grocery stores to take something to eat and drink, while others ate their meals in the homes of Lebanese citizens. It boggles the mind that soldiers were sent to war without food and water. There is no point in even commenting further about this, other to say that the IDF soldiers who fought under such indescribably awful conditions deserve recognition and honor. As for the political and military leadership of Israel, it must be replaced immediately. Wednesday, August 16, 2006
Less Secretive Than The Jets My column in this week's Jewish Press is surely the first time that the Jets have made it into a JP article title. The relevant excerpt is as follows: It is difficult to understand the lack of confidentiality with which Israel conducted the war. Anyone could turn on FOX or CNN and immediately find out exactly where soldiers were deployed and where Hizbullah’s latest barrage of rockets fell. Worse, also in real time, Israel announced what it would be doing and when. While Israel seeks to provide free access to the media, it must never compromise the element of surprise, risk the effectiveness of military operations, or unnecessarily put soldiers in any additional jeopardy. On the diplomatic front, the leaks emanating out of Israel were no less lamentable. Throughout last week there were constant leaks indicating that Israel was ready to accept a cease-fire, with anonymous sources “close to the Israeli government” routinely being quoted. Needless to say, that did not improve Israel’s leverage in the sensitive negotiations of ceasefire terms. On the political front, newspaper reports included particular details of debates between various cabinet ministers, with a scorecard of who voted for what and who said what during security cabinet meetings. As a longtime fan of the New York Jets football team, I find it disturbing – for Israel, of course – that the Jets are operated with considerably greater secrecy than is Israel at war. Tuesday, August 15, 2006
Jets Trade ... Never Mind Apparently playing the role of a New York Jet a little too early, Lee Suggs has failed his physical, and the trade of Derrick Strait for Suggs has been rescinded. No word yet on whether Strait sprained his ankle while boarding his flight back to New York. Speaking of injuries, anyone else who thinks that Pedro Martinez's latest injury - a purported calf strain - is a contrived explanation for his terrible performance last night? Monday, August 14, 2006
Jets Trade I'm not sure what to make of the Jets trade of cornerback/safety Derrick Strait to the Browns for running back Lee Suggs. Strait gave the Jets depth at defensive back, but it's an area that they have relative depth at, so his loss will not likely have a major impact. A third round pick in the 2004 draft, overall Strait has to be considered another disappointing pick by ex-GM Terry Bradway. Suggs has talent, but has been quite injury prone throughout his four year career. I guess the Jets have little confidence in Derrick Blaylock or Cedric Houston, and don't expect Curtis Martin to come back from his knee injury. It will be interesting to see which running backs don't make the team. I wouldn't be surprised to see Blaylock and fullback B.J. Askew both get cut at the end of training camp. I like Askew, but he's a better runner than blocker, and I think Eric Mangini will be primarily looking for blocking out of his fullback. Sunday, August 13, 2006
Olmert Was Right To Accept Ceasefire ... But Israel Needs A New Government From here in New York, it's not difficult to call on Israel to send tens of thousands of soldiers into Lebanon to fight Hezbollah. I happen to think Prime Minister Olmert was right to "blink" when he did, and accept terms for a ceasefire. While I have no illusions about the value of UN Resolution 1701, I don't think there was any purpose in sacrificing hundreds more soldiers. While a result in which Israel achieved its aims could justify the loss of many more soldiers, it is quite likely that Israel would have gotten stuck in a protracted war of attrition that it probably could not decisively win. Under the circumstances, accepting a ceasefire was the right move. Of course, the ceasefire may not take effect tomorrow, and even if it does, Israel will probably have to fight another battle against Hezbollah sometime in the next few years. That bitter reality still does not change that unless victory was likely, Israel could not indefinitely allow 25 percent of its citizens to be refugees or live in bomb shelters, and ensure that thousands more become bereaved parents, wives, children and siblings. None of this absolves Olmert from taking responsibility for Israel's failures. He, defense minister Amir Peretz, and foreign minister Tzipi Livni all performed abysmally. Furthermore, Olmert's strategy of unilateral withdrawal from Judea and Samaria has been rendered absurd. Ideally, Haaretz's Ari Shavit's call for Olmert to be immediately replaced as prime minister would occur. But that isn't going to happen. Still, while Olmert will remain prime minister, Israel does need a new government, with new leadership. During the war, while Livni was invisible, Likud leader Binyamin Netanyahu served as a leading spokesman for his country. While media "experts" expect Netanyahu to slam Olmert when both speak in the Knesset, they ignore Netanyahu's national responsibility. In my opinion, Netanyahu will offer much deserved criticism of the government, but also call for Israelis to work together against their enemies. Netanyahu knows that now is not a time for national discord. Olmert should bring Netanyahu's Likud and Avigdor Lieberman's Yisroel Beiteinu party into a new national unity government. Only a new government, with new leaders, new ideas and new goals can lead Israel to better results against its enemies. Saturday, August 12, 2006
Four Comments On The War 1. Over the last few weeks, I've been engaged in a debate with Elster over his charge that Israel "underestimated" Hezbollah. I strongly disagree that Israel's military or political leadership was surprised by Hezbollah's capabilities and resolve, and believe instead that overconfidence in air power and complacency generally were the leadership's primary failings. However, I do believe that soldiers - not reservists, but the 18-21 year old kids serving their three years of army service - might have been surprised by Hezbollah's capabilities. Unlike reservists who had previous combat experience in Lebanon, the young soldiers' only combat experience was against Fatah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Judea, Samaria and Gaza, and they might have been expecting something similar. In light of what Israel has gone through with the Palestinians over the last six years, it's somewhat understandable that combat units have primarily been trained to fight Palestinian terror. However, Israel's military and political leadership must be blamed for hastily going into a war that their combat soldiers were not ready to fight. There was no need to attack Lebanon within hours after Hezbollah's July 12 attack. 2. Around ten days into the war, while I was in Israel, a friend of mine told me that his boss had been called into reservist combat duty. According to my friend, his boss told his commander that while he was willing to report, he was 40 years old, out of shape, and hadn't been in combat in years, and that he doubted he could help the military effort. The commander told him to come, that the IDF needed soldiers with combat experience in Lebanon. I don't know whether to take this as a mere anecdote, or as part of the military complacency. Why weren't reservists who were to fight in Lebanon, if necessary, given more military training so that they would be adequately prepared in the event of war? 3. There must be a Commission of Inquiry to investigate Israel's failures, particularly the pre-war failures as to why Hezbollah was allowed to build up a state within a state and to amass advanced weaponry since Israel's withdrawal in 2000. Unfortunately, I believe Israel's political leadership to be completely rotten. Ehud Barak, Ariel Sharon and Ehud Olmert all deserve very significant blame for the complete failure to deal with the threat from the north. Olmert, in a way, is least to blame, since he has only been prime minister for seven months. Yet, Olmert was a senior cabinet minister and deputy prime minister in Sharon's government, and should not have made bombastic and grandiose statements about crushing Hezbollah. 4. Indeed, had Olmert stated more realistic and modest goals early on, Israel would not be dealing with the stench of defeat. The truth is that using objective criteria, while Israel's stated goals have not been achieved, it has not lost this war. If - and it's a big if - the UN and the Lebanese government do what they are supposed to do, Hezbollah will no longer be on the border with Israel. That, along with the destruction of many Hezbollah positions, is not an insignificant achievement. However, as has been stated, perception is often more important than reality in the Middle East, and the perception on the Arab street is not one that is good for Israel, or, for that matter, the U.S. Friday, August 11, 2006
Fears Of Bad Ramifications For Israel UPDATE: 11:34 a.m.: Haaretz is reporting that Prime Minister Olmert is dissatisfied with the proposed terms for a ceasefire, and has authorized the IDF to implement its proposal for a broad operation in Lebanon. UPDATE: 12:02 p.m.: Apparently, late changes to the text demanded by the Arab League and agreed to by Secretary of State Rice caused Olmert to reject the proposed UN resolution. Nice job by the Orthodox Union thanking Condi for her "support." Last night, a non-Jewish friend e-mailed me the following: Joe, Today's editorial in The Jerusalem Post submits a similar sentiment, and laments that the Bush Administration appears to have terminated its support for Israel's military operations: The White House's sudden decision to return to the language of moral equivalence is very puzzling and disturbing. Presidential spokesman Tony Snow said just after the cabinet decision that "we want an end to violence and we do not want escalations." In today's Haaretz, Ari Shavit offers a blistering critique of Prime Minister Olmert, writing: If Olmert runs away now from the war he initiated, he will not be able to remain prime minister for even one more day. Chutzpah has its limits. You cannot lead an entire nation to war promising victory, produce humiliating defeat and remain in power. You cannot bury 120 Israelis in cemeteries, keep a million Israelis in shelters for a month, wear down deterrent power, bring the next war very close, and then say - oops, I made a mistake. That was not the intention. Pass me a cigar, please. In principle, I agree with the sentiments expressed by my friend, by Ari Shavit and by The Jerusalem Post. Yet I'm ambivalent, because I just don't know whether a protracted ground operation will result in a radical change. It is nearly certain that hundreds of IDF soldiers - mostly reservists who thought they'd be enjoying the summer - would sacrifice their lives. Many others will survive but lose limbs, or otherwise be severely maimed. The residents of northern Israel will continue to live in bomb shelters, or be displaced, for an indefinite period. Israel would still be hit with daily barrages of rockets. There has been a lot of talk about the purported failure of Israel's air war. While it's true that air strikes are not enough, the primary reason why Israel's air strikes have not had as much of a strategic effect as had been hoped is that Israel has been severely constrained from utilizing the IAF's abilities. Hezbollah has made sure to operate from civilian locations, and as a result, Israel's air strikes have routinely caused civilian collateral damage. The media and the international community immediately condemn Israel. As a result, Israel then hesitates before using air power, sends ground forces into homes instead of bombing those homes, and sustains heavy IDF casualties as a result. Apparently, the type of air power shown in Kosovo can only be utilized by an international alliance, and certainly not by a small Jewish state. If, as is being reported, a ceasefire is imposed in the next few days - and it is too early to say that it will actually take effect even if a UN Resolution is issued - the result of the war can probably best be described as inconclusive. On one hand, Israel will have weakened Hezbollah, and achieved some sort of resolution and international force intended to prevent Hezbollah from attacking Israel from southern Lebanon. On the other hand, the Arab world will understand that Hezbollah emerged intact despite bombing Israel day after day. This war has been widely described as existential, but that's a bit too simplistic, I think. To be sure, Israel remains engaged in an existential war with both the Palestinians and Iran. (It is unclear if it now understands that its war with the Palestinians is existential.) Yet, failure to win a decisive victory in this battle does not mean that Israel is, God forbid, doomed. Indeed, it should not be forgotten that during Ehud Barak's last months as prime minister, when Yasser Arafat launched his terror war, Barak - doing his Crazy Eddie impersonation - meekly responded by trying to give the country away. Then, Israel was in a very precarious position. Ariel Sharon also acted with restraint for more than a year. Only in the spring of 2002 did Sharon order an offensive against Palestinian terror, and the response from President Bush was a demand that Israel stop. It took yet another wave of suicide bombings in June 2002, and the murder of dozens more Israelis, for the Bush Administration to finally shun Arafat and express support for Israel's military operations. It may be that Shavit is right that just as Israel needed a new leader to lead Israel's war against Arafat, it will now need a new leader for the war against Iran and its proxy in Lebanon. In any event, while Israel's performance in this war might indeed lead to bad ramifications, neither Israel's friends nor its enemies should underestimate Israel's ability to learn the appropriate lessons from the events of July-August 2006, and achieve a better result, albeit at a price that will be quite painful. Thursday, August 10, 2006
Curtis Martin's Knee: Blame Herm That the Jets' old evil regime rushed back QB Chad Pennington well before his shoulder had healed is well documented, but Dan Leberfeld reminds us that Herm Edwards is also responsible for the fact that running back Curtis Martin's career hangs in the balance. As Leberfeld writes: Martin hurt his knee in Week Two last year, but continued playing with the injury until Week 13. Readers of this blog will recall my posts last year about this matter. Here are a few: Week 2: "Curtis Martin ran the ball 31 times yesterday. That is simply inexcusable. The Jets gave a big contract to Derrick Blaylock to serve as Martin's backup, but after failing to get a carry last week, Blaylock was given the ball only twice yesterday." Week 3: "For four years, the Jets let Lamont Jordan languish on the bench. After Jordan left for Oakland, the Jets made Derrick Blaylock the highest paid backup running back in the NFL. Yet Blaylock has only carried the ball 5 times in the Jets first three games. Yesterday, despite promising all week that Blaylock would get significant playing time since Curtis Martin has an injured knee - and despite the running game's ineffectiveness - Blaylock did not even touch the ball until the 4th quarter." Week 4: "Derrick Blaylock again went essentially unused today, with only two carries. Why exactly was he given a $3.2 million signing bonus and an $11 million contract? The failure to utilize Blaylock is especially galling since Curtis Martin has been totally ineffective." Week 5: "After carrying the ball just ten times in the Jets first five games, Derrick Blaylock broke his foot today and is out for the season. For the 2005 season, Blaylock earned a cool $250,000 per carry, or around $135,000 for each of his 19 yards rushing." Week 8: "Edwards now reveals that Curtis Martin sustained a serious knee injury in week 2 that should have kept Martin out for a couple of weeks. In other words, Martin should have missed weeks 3 and 4. "I guess that would explain why in week 3, backup running back Derrick Blaylock did not carry the ball until the 4th quarter (and only got three rushes then) and why in the week 4 loss to Baltimore, Blaylock only ran the ball twice. "Yep, Herm sure is doing some magnificent coaching." I'll stop there. Enough about Herm. Let Kansan City - I think that's where Jewboy is from - enjoy him now. More On The Misguided OU Petition Further to my post on Monday, today's developments regarding a revised draft UN Resolution are further evidence of the fact that the OU's petition supporting President Bush and Secretary Rice was a bad idea. The bottom line is that the new proposed resolution is worse for Israel, and better for Hezbollah, than the resolution proposed on Sunday. While it would be unfair to say that the Bush Administration has sold Israel out, the U.S. did move somewhat toward the French position that Arab "concerns" must be addressed. While the OU's motives were surely in the right place, when an organization as pro-Israel as the OU offers fawning thanks to the Bush Administration in the middle of a difficult war, it is hardly serving Israel's interests. Wednesday, August 09, 2006
Recriminations Must Wait Until After The War Many people - including some bloggers - are already assigning blame for Israel's failure (at this point) to crush Hezbollah. Some argue that it's Ehud Olmert's fault for rejecting sound IDF plans, others argue that it's Chief of Staff Dan Halutz's fault for relying too much on air power, others say that Amir Peretz is unqualified to be defense minister, while others blame Major General Udi Adam of the IDF's Northern Command. Ehud Barak and Ariel Sharon have also taken their share of blame. Most who are critical don't have access to real information. Instead, they're relying on what they read and hear. War is a good time to be skeptical about what one reads and hears. Furthermore, war is a bad time to scapegoat people on the side of the good guys, particularly if the goal is still to win the war, as of course it is. After Israel's war, there likely will be an independent commission of inquiry which will issue a report assessing the performance of the military and political leadership's readiness and preparation for war against Hezbollah. Rather than speculate about who deserves blame at a time when unity is a strategic necessity, everyone should wait for that commission to submit its findings. Fighting to the Last Israeli Did you hear, the cabinet finally decided to send troops deep into Lebanon. I don't know what they were waiting for. It's about time to go after those guys.-Overheard today at Kosher Deluxe. I've never served in an army and don't claim to be a military expect. When I heard today that Israel's cabinet had authorized Prime Minister Olmert to direct the IDF to substantially expand operations in Lebanon, my first thought was about the many reservists who have been, and will be, called up, and, God forbid, won't come home, or will sustain injuries. Indeed, whenever I see IDF troops on TV, my first thought is concern about their safety. I'm not naive about the painful costs of war, and I certainly believe Israel's current war is justified and necessary. But there's something repellent to me about American Jews expressing excitement over the broadening of a war, especially since few of these American Jews are even visiting Israel now, let alone serving in the IDF. That said, while I'm not an expect on military strategy, and don't know whether Israel should commence a massive ground operation to take control over all of southern Lebanon up to the Litani River or should instead take a different military approach, I do have serious questions and concerns about the lack of secrecy with which this war is being operated. Whether out of hubris or out of unnecessarily exaggerated insistence on providing access to the media, Israel is far too open about what it is doing and what it plans to do. One could turn on FOX or CNN, and immediately find out where soldiers are currently deployed, and where Hezbollah's latest barrage of rockets fell. Worse, also in real time, Israel announces what it will be doing and when. Something tells me that if, on the evening of June 6, 1967, Israel had announced that it had authorized the IDF to take control over the Old City of Jerusalem and would be commencing a military operation the next morning, many more soldiers would have died in that battle. If, two days later, Prime Minister Eshkol had announced that Israel had decided to try to take the Golan Heights, the UN would surely have imposed a ceasefire to prevent that. While Israel seeks to provide free access to the media, it must not do so if it in any way reduces the element of surprise, thereby limiting the effectiveness of operations and putting soldiers in additional (and unnecessary) jeopardy. Exploiting A Tragedy To Bash The Upper West Side While I was in Israel, a 25 year old modern Orthodox woman living in the Upper West Side jumped from an eighth floor window to her death. Unfortunately, I've recently come across bloggers who have used this tragedy as a means with which to bash the singles scene in the Upper West Side. I certainly have no problem with criticism of the UWS scene, but this tragedy surely has nothing to do with that. Some people like living in the UWS. Some don't like it, and move away. Some don't like it, but stay, because being single in the UWS is for them still preferable to being single in another community. Many - perhaps most - like some aspects and dislike other aspects. I fell into the last category during my UWS stint. While I'm not a psychiatrist or a psychologist, I think it's obvious that this young woman was suffering from severe clinical depression. Her suicide is a terrible tragedy for her, for her family, for her friends, and for the Jewish world. Likely, setbacks in her personal life were the final straw before she ended her life, but ultimately they were only tangentially related to that tragedy. The primary and proximate cause was clinical depression. Bloggers who baselessly and speculatively use this woman's death to bash the UWS should be ashamed of themselves for exploiting a tragedy for the sake of a provocative post. Sbarro Five Years Later A month before 9/11, the bombing at Sbarro five years ago today was particularly painful, shattering any remaining illusion that any place in Israel was safe from Arafat and Hamas' terror war. By then, Israel had already been enduring nearly a year of mass murder of its civilians. Men, women and children were shot dead on roads, stoned to death in the woods, lynched by Arab mobs, and blown up in suicide bombings. When Sbarro was bombed, the first reaction of many here in the U.S. was shock that a place they'd eaten at many times, right on the corner of King George and Jaffa, had been hit. Within a few months, the center of Jerusalem would sustain repeated bombings, but then, the idea of a very familiar place becoming such a horrific venue was itself a shock. When reports about the many victims quickly surfaced, the shock turned into terrible pain. There was Shoshana Greenbaum, who was visiting Israel from New Jersey and was pregnant with her first child. Frieda Mendelsohn, the wife of the shamash at the Yeshurun Shul a few minutes walk away, who had come to Sbarro with her daughter after taking some medical tests. Michal Raziel and Malki Roth were 16 and 15, and close friends who had gone to Sbarro for lunch. Ten year old Yocheved Shoshan was eating pizza with her mother and two sisters. She and her sister went downstairs to order another slice when the bomber entered. Yocheved was killed, her sister Miriam seriously wounded. Many more were seriously wounded, including Chana Nachenberg, who had made aliyah from New York, and who remains in a coma. Chana was with her then 3 year old daughter, who avoided physical injury. Most painful was the fate of the Schijveschuurder family, which had made aliyah from Holland. Both parents - Motti and Tzira - and three children, 14 year old Ra'aya, 4 year old Yitzchak, and 2 year old Chemda were all murdered. As they were dying, in their final seconds, Yitzchak asked his father to help him. Motti responded by saying the shema yisrael prayer. Sisters Leah and Chaya were physically wounded and emotionally devastated, but survived, as did three older brothers who were not at Sbarro. A few months later, Leah and Chaya went back to Holland to live with relatives. Sbarro was quickly rebuilt and reopened, but today, there is a bakery at the large storefront at the intersection of King George and Jaffa. The inside of the store is completely different, and stopping off for a pastry there, it's easy to forget the destruction that occurred five years ago. Sbarro is in a smaller space about a five minute walk down Jaffa Road. The small memorial for the victims of August 9, 2001 was moved there. May their memories be a blessing, and may God avenge their blood and pour out his wrath upon the evil enemies of the civilized world. Tuesday, August 08, 2006
Chad Pennington's Reemergence Since Jets QB Chad Pennington sustained a second major shoulder injury last September, numerous cynics have scoffed at the notion that Pennington would return to be the Jets' leader. In frequent comments on this blog during the 2005 season and into the offseason, Jetsphan even ridiculed the mere mention of Pennington, labeling him irrelevant. While I share concerns as to whether Pennington is durable enough to withstand the physical punishment of the NFL, I've long rejected the view that Pennington is done. These days, major league pitchers come back after sustaining torn rotator cuffs to regain velocity on their fastballs of 95 miles per hour and higher. Surely a quarterback who never relied on arm strength could regain his accuracy. Furthermore, other quarterbacks, such as Phil Simms and Rich Gannon, recovered from being labeled injury-prone to have solid careers. Then there are guys who can't play a full 16 game season but remain valuable when healthy. Steve McNair, Michael Vick, and Kurt Warner are in that group. Early in Jets' training camp, it appears that unlike last season, when the old evil regime rushed him back prematurely, Pennington has recovered from his shoulder injuries, and that he is by far the best quarterback on the Jets roster. If he stays healthy throughout the preseason, he will start at Tennessee in next month's season opener. It is silly to point out Pennington's shortcomings and his injury history, as Jetsphan and others continue to do. Even assuming that Pennington is only an average starting quaterback, the bottom line is that Pennington is under contract, and he is the best the Jets currently have. If Pennington gets hurt, he will be replaced. If his performance is mediocre, second round draft pick Kellen Clemens will be given a chance to replace him next season - or even in the latter part of 2006. In the meantime, Pennington is the only quarterback who gives the Jets a chance to win more than five games this season. Pennington is coming into a tough spot, with rookies at left tackle and center, especially since the rest of the offensive line is average at best. It will probably take half the season for the offensive line to solidify, and hopefully Pennington will remain intact during what will be a tough first half of 2006. It also doesn't help that the Jets have not really improved at wide receiver, and that Curtis Martin looks like he may never play again, leaving the Jets with a bunch of no-names at running back, and making the decision to let Lamont Jordan leave for nothing after the 2004 season all the more regrettable. Michael Oren's Faulty Analysis I have long been a fan of Michael Oren of the Shalem Center. Indeed, I have identified Oren's book, 'Six Days of War', as one of my favorites, and his military and political analysis - both oral and written - is routinely right on target. Surprisingly, Oren's column in today's Wall Street Journal contains a number of inaccuracies. Oren's premise is that in the past Israel won its wars but lost "the subsequent diplomatic contests," while today, Israel may not win a decisive victory over Hezbollah, but the pending proposed UN resolution could be "a breakthrough for Israeli diplomacy." In setting forth this argument, Oren makes a number overly simplistic factual statements. First, he writes that "In its 1948 War of Independence, Israel defeated six Arab armies and yet at the end of the fighting merely achieved armistice agreements that denied it recognition and perpetuated the state of war." That is true, but the armistice agreements allowed Israel to permanently retain territory captured in the War of Independence, and that territory is significantly larger than what Israel was to receive in the 1947 UN partition plan. Nearly six decades later, the international community accepts that Israel's borders should be based on its 1949 post-War of Independence borders, rather on the UN's pre-war partition plan. That was and is a diplomatic victory. Next, Oren submits that "Israel's unqualified victory in the 1967 Six Day War produced United Nations Resolution 242, which, contrary to conventional belief, does not explicitly require Arab rulers to recognize the Jewish state even in return for territory." However, in sharp contrast to the international community's forcing of Israel to cede Sinai and Gaza shortly after its 1956 victory over Egypt, UN Resolution 242 did not require an Israeli withdrawal from Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, Gaza, Sinai and the Golan Heights. Instead, it allowed Israel to retain those territories as bargaining chips in negotiations with its Arab neighbors. Furthermore, Israel's right to exist in "secure borders" was recognized in UN Resolution 242. Israel's ultimate unilateral withdrawal from Gaza, noted by Oren, was not a diplomatic defeat. It was a decision voluntarily entered into and implemented by Israel's previous government. (For what it's worth, it is also a decision that Oren fully supported.) Oren then claims that Israel has been unable "to make military capital yield diplomatic dividends." Not only does that ignore the tacit acceptance of Israel's annexation of the territory it captured in 1948-49, as well as the positive aspects of UN Resolution 242, it completely forgets that Israel's peace treaty with Egypt was a direct result of Israel's military victories in 1967 and 1973. The victory over Jordan in 1967 and the treaty with Egypt also led to Israel's relatively friendly relationship with King Hussein of Jordan, and eventually, to the 1995 peace agreement between Israel and Jordan. With regard to the current situation, Oren greatly exaggerates the benefits to Israel of the proposed UN Resolution calling for a ceasefire between Israel and Hezbollah. According to Oren, the proposed international force "can expel all terrorist elements from the area between the border and the Litani, and enforce an international embargo on the sale and supply of arms to Hezbollah." But the proposed resolution merely recommends the formation of an international force, and a second resolution would have to be passed to actually authorize the formation of that force. Furthermore, even if such a force is actually deployed, it is quite unlikely that it can or will "expel all terrorist elements from the area" or "enforce an international embargo on the sale and supply of arms to Hezbollah." If the IDF cannot accomplish these goals - and Oren writes that it would be impossible to do so without "decimating the entire country" - why would a force primarily comprised of troops from EU states be expected to expel Hezbollah and prevent its acquisition of arms, particularly given that the EU refuses to even label Hezbollah as a terror group, and (with the exception of Britain) continues to maintain cozy relations with Syria and Iran. Oren also misconstrues the draft resolution when he writes that "Israel will receive the unconditional release of its kidnapped soldiers." While the resolution does call for the unconditional release of the IDF soldiers, such release is not a condition precedent to a ceasefire. In other words, even if Hezbollah refuses to release the soldiers, as it surely will, Israel must comply with the ceasefire. Furthermore, Oren makes much over the fact that Israel's military victories did not result in recognition of Israel by its enemies. If lack of recognition is a diplomatic failure, isn't the fact that Israel remains under serious threat from Iran and its Hezbollah proxy, and has not been recognized by Lebanon, a diplomatic shortcoming today? Michael Oren can usually be relied upon for sober and pragmatic analysis of the situation in the Middle East. While the flaws in his column in today's Wall Street Journal would therefore appear to be aberrational, they cannot go unchallenged, as wishful thinking is neither a solution to Israel's inability to crush Hezbollah, nor to Israel's security and diplomatic problems. Monday, August 07, 2006
Bogus Norman Schwarzkopf Quote I've received from three different people an e-mail in which Norman Schwarzkopf is purported to have made rather witty pro-Israel and anti-Hezbollah quips. Of course, the quotes of Schwarzkopf are completely fabricated. Indeed, almost all of these kinds of e-mails are either completely fabricated or heavily distorted. Why do people naively believe these types of chain e-mails to contain accurate information and continue to forward them? Misguided OU Petition Like SephardiLady and, presumably, many other bloggers, on Friday I received via e-mail a request from the Orthodox Union that I encourage readers to sign an OU petition to George W. Bush and Condi Rice "thanking them for their support of Israel." The e-mail described the petition as "a very important and powerful initiative here at the OU." Unlike SephardiLady, I find the petition to be extremely ill-advised. The U.S. is currently negotiating amended terms for a draft UN resolution that is intended to put an end to Israel's battle against Hezbollah. Whatever one thinks of the proposed resolution, it is certainly premature to thank Bush and Rice for their support while Israel is engaged in difficult military and diplomatic battles, with victory assured in neither. While the petition may well be very "important and powerful" for the OU from a public relations perspective, I don't think it is helpful to Israel. Of course, Bush's support should be appreciated, but the petition fails to take into account the fluid nature of the current situation. On the other hand, assuming that the funds are dispersed appropriately (as I assume they are and will be), the OU's Israel Emergency Fund is indeed an important and powerful initiative that will be helpful to Israel, and I hope many will donate generously. Friday, August 04, 2006
Reflections from Beirut Five years ago, The Jerusalem Post published a fascinating column by Nabil Khalifeh of Lebanon called "Reflections from Beirut." The column was very pro-Israel and anti-Syria, Hezbollah and PLO. Shortly after its publication, Khalifeh denied having written the piece. Now that the Lebanese government is demanding - with apparent support from our friend Condi Rice - the Sheba Farms as part of a ceasefire deal, it's worth recalling what Khalifeh (or whomever wrote the column) said about the matter. He wrote: Never retreat from Sheba Farms. A new issue will immediately emerge. (Has anyone in Israel heard about "the seven villages?") You will hear about it as soon as you give Sheba away. Khalifeh also wrote that Israel should "never bargain with Syria over Lebanon" and expressed his view that "a strong and democratic state in Israel is a must to insure the stability of the region, even though the forces of evil consider this treason and blasphemy. But the fact that they have nothing to offer but destruction and bloodshed makes their opinion trivial. Let there be no compromise with these people: we know them well." Thursday, August 03, 2006
Olmert's Propaganda Must Be Rejected Less disturbing than Israel's disappointing failure to crush Hezbollah is Prime Minister Olmert's claim that Israel has essentially done just that. The war continues to rage, and during the course of the war I will not offer a detailed analysis of Israel's performance during the war. However, it is a matter of fact that at this time Hezbollah not only continues to exist, with its leadership intact, it also continues to send large numbers of rockets into northern Israel, up to Haifa. If the war ends in this manner, Hezbollah will remain a threat to Israel, regardless of what the UN Security Council purports to do, and regardless of whether the kidnapped soldiers return in some sort of prisoner exchange. Israel must defend itself from Hezbollah and other threats - particularly those from Iran and from the Palestinians - in a sober, realistic and objective manner. It is not okay to claim total victory when total victory has not been achieved. For years, especially since the first Gulf War, Israel has ignored military threats and attacks. It decided not to respond to Saddam Hussein's 39 scud missiles. It arrogantly let the PLO into Judea, Samaria and Gaza, insisting that the PLO would crush Hamas and was therefore basically an ally. It downplayed the threat of Hezbollah too. It insisted that unilateral withdrawal from Gaza was actually a punishment against the Palestinians and would result in no harm to Israel. In a way, the biggest threat to Israel is its complacent insistence on ignoring the threats to its security and its existence. Exaggerating the scope of victory over a weakened but still menacing Hezbollah by claiming that Hezbollah has been crushed would be disastrous. Ignoring the obvious lessons from Lebanon and Gaza - that unilateral withdrawal strengthens the enemy and results in attacks on Israeli cities that no security fence can prevent - is unacceptable. Refusing to understand that military deterrence cannot be achieved solely via air strikes, and that control on the ground remains essential, will lead to disaster in the next phase of Israel's war against Hamas, Fatah, and Hezbollah. Implementing another unilateral withdrawal from Judea and Samaria, thereby bringing Jerusalem, Tel Aviv and Ben Gurion Airport into rocket range could, G-d forbid, be fatal. | "
