This cute blasphemy courtesy of the awesome web comic of math, nerdom and romance xkcd.com. Hat tip to the Google Buzz feeds of David A.M. Wilensky and Drew Cohen.
Tefillah punctuation experiments: the Shma
The Torah scroll contains no punctuation marks, not even periods. There are no lower case letters. Or are there no capital letters? Ostensibly, the entire Five Books of Moses is one single sentence. A single period or comma alters the flow and intent. What are we actually saying when when we speak Judaism’s most central prayer?
#0
shma yisrael adonai eloheinu adonai echad
listen israel my-lord our-god my-lord one
#1
Shma, Yisrael, Adonai, Eloheinu, Adonai, Echad.
Listen, Israel, my Lord, our God, my Lord, One.
Listen, Israel, my lord, our god, my lord, one.
Listen, Israel, My lord, Our god, my lord, one.
#2
Shma: Yisrael Adonai. Eloheinu Adonai. Echad.
Listen: Israel is my lord. Our god is my lord. One.
#3
Shma. Yisrael. Adonai. Eloheinu. Adonai. Echad.
Listen. Israel is. My Lord is. Our God is. My Lord is. Oneness is.
#4
Shma, Yisrael Adonai Eloheinu Adonai Echad.
Listen, Israel is my Lord is our God is my Lord is one.
#5
Shma! Yisrael! Adonai! Eloheinu! Adonai! Echad!
LISTEN! ISRAEL! MY LORD! OUR GOD! MY GOD! ONE!
#6
Shma…Yisrael…Adonai…Eloheinu…Adonai…echad…
Listen…Israel is…my Lord is…our God is…my Lord is…one is…
March 2nd, 2010 Filed under: Judaism. 0 Comments
For my friends in Toronto: Yalla Journal talks at “Talk” March 20
I have an emotional connection to Yalla, so to speak.
Not only was I an early fan of their project and contributor, but someone special to me is on their editorial board. Yalla began as a literary journal where both Jewish and Arab youth could express the full spectrum of feelings about the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. And when I say the “full spectrum” I mean everything from both sides of both sides except calls for violence. It is one of the few places where such a dialogue is possible without yelling, screaming and ugliness.
Recently, they branched out into events that bring young people from both populations together. They just hosted Confronting Ourselves, their first stand-alone (and standing room only) reading night, held at Free Times Cafe in downtown Toronto on December 10, 2009. You can watch the YouTubes of that night, where Jews read the words of Arabs, Muslims read the words of Jews, and for once in a blue moon, people listen beautifully even if they don’t agree.
This is their next benefit event below, a March 20th showing of Talk, a play about Jewish and Arab friends whose blissful avoidance of politics ends with the arrival of a new girlfriend. Enter code 4444 and 15% of your ticket price will go to Yalla. Join Yalla’s Facebook group, attend the Facebook event, or buy your tickets.
February 23rd, 2010 Filed under: Israel. 0 Comments
Why I don’t think a one-state solution is a solution
From a comment on Jewschool thread, I thought I’d harvest this thought I have whenever I’m talking to advocates of a one-state solution:
A one-state solution would still be a two-state solution: the Jewish Israelis have all the wealth and representation in every national governing body. The Palestinians would continue as second-class citizens facing entrenched discrimination. Both peoples, deeply married to the concept of self-determination, would have to do an about face on a hundred years or more of nationalism.
The entire legal codes and national symbols of the country would have to be rewritten and voted into effect, which I can only imagine as problematic as what is happening in Iraq now. Violence would continue as terrorists and settler extremists continue to espouse ethnic domination and revenge. Riots between Jews and Arabs would be commonplace over each ill-executed (or resisted) attempt at integration of two peoples into one government, military, police force, education system, et al.
With open borders to the Arab world, I can only assume that fear of terrorism from abroad would result in the Jewish sector retreating into private security enclaves. Parts of the elite of both groups would leave the country, meaning Jews who fear their safety and Palestinians seeking better opportunities than minimum wage labor.
The Jews would find themselves as top dogs in a country still killing along ethnic lines; Palestinians would find themselves still fighting tooth and nail for equality. The journey to “peace” would be another 60 years in the making and quite possibly a retreat back into nationalism and a renewed two-state solution.
For the sake of preserving lives instead of intellectual consistency, I don’t think a one-state solution brings us closer to peace. In fact, I think it puts us further from it.
February 22nd, 2010 Filed under: Israel. 2 Comments
Articles will not save Israelis and Palestinians
I say this as a blogger — obviously someone well aware of the power of words — that articles will not save Israelis and Palestinians from death. Even as someone who finds something new and cogent to say about the Middle East frequently, I find most articles about the region repetitive. Yet why is one of the most common forms of activism (let me say “slack-tivism”) is the forwarding of articles?
Don’t get me wrong, I also appreciate the insights of the many, many liberal thinkers out there. I could notify my co-conspirators about interesting screeds all through the work day without touching a single work-related email! Somedays I would love to do nothing but bombard the Twitterverse with interesting tidbits. Or fisk the idiocy of coverage I despise.
Except ultimately, I know that does nothing to hasten the peace process itself. It’s not that sharing articles isn’t modestly helpful. Or that really good articles deserve attention. It’s just not the most helpful action you. Especially if you’re sending them to me — I already read it, I assure you.
Thus my new proposal: for each article you forward, I will require you to make 5 phone calls to untapped progressive leaders in NYC who would make great activists.
February 16th, 2010 Filed under: Israel. 3 Comments
I and all the things I stand for are under attack
I am under attack. I and all the things I stand for are under attack. Im Tirtzu has launched a campaign against the New Israel Fund, blaming it for the Goldstone report. “Without NIF, there would be no Goldstone report” they are claiming. Which is to say, without the Jews who support the New Israel Fund, there would be no Goldstone. Without Jews who believe in inalienable rights to safety and security, there would be no Goldstone. Without it’s staff and volunteers, there would be no Goldstone. Without you, KFJ, there would be no Goldstone. Without human rights values, there would be no Goldstone. Without the values you believe are most important in the world, KFJ, there wouldn’t be a Goldstone report.
Organizations in Israel rightly see this attack as against not just NIF, but all human rights orgs. And we progressives (rightly so!) see it as an attack on us, on human rights as a value to even begin with. The New Israel Fund is a pride and joy of my involvement with the organized Jewish community. There is no other place in Jewry where my peoplehood, my values, and my talents overlap as they do here.
Truth is, I came to Israel advocacy by accident! I went to Israel as a naive 21-year-old because I felt obligated to my people. After I saw the occupation, I got involved not because the country did anything but horrify me, but because my God told me to fix a problem. Even if there weren’t an ethnic conflict between two peoples, there would still be enough economic injustice there to last a lifetime of fixing. And at my resistance, but God’s insistence, I pledged my every talent to fix it. For as long as it takes.
The State of Israel defied everything I expected it to be. Righteous indignation fueled my work. Until I met Israeli human rights activists, under the auspices of the New Israel Fund. Mizrachim, Ethiopians and Bedouin, and plenty Ashkenazim who leave their privilege behind to take up their neighbors’ fights. Soldiers who weather taunts of “traitor.” Lawyers who forsake the good life for the good fight. Again reluctantly, I fell in love with a quality of their spirit that I can only label as “Israeli.” There is an innocent chutzpah in their own righteous indignation that I find aggravatingly charming. I’m in awe of all of them for bold-headedly creating what we take for granted in America: civil rights legislation, public interest law, grassroots advocacy in myraid sub-fields of social justice.
By day I work in Israel education. By night I lead in progressive Israel advocacy. By the midnight lamp, I blog the excess energies about (yes) saving Israel. Some nights I am not sure what I’m saving — a state? A people? A nationality? Principles? Jewish values? My own conscience? But I never forget who I’m doing it for: not myself, and not even Israelis at large. I’m working myself day and night to preserve something I’m not totally convinced is worthy. I work to save not Israel abstractly, but the incredible souls who are her human, civil and social rights activists that I have met through the New Israel Fund.
And now — with the blessing of the government, the military brass, and Christian Zionists — Israel will say to me that Israeli society doesn’t believe in human rights? That human rights are a threat to Israel? That I and everything I stand for are traitors?
February 2nd, 2010 Filed under: Israel and Musings. 2 Comments
Public Committee Against Torture in Israel: Report on IDF changes in policy during Gaza operation
The Public Committee Against Torture in Israel released a report “No Second Thoughts: Changes in the IDF’s Combat Doctrine In Light of Operation Cast Lead.” The report explains how the IDF’s shift of priority from minimizing civilian casualties to minimizing IDF casualties constitutes deliberate harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure — in violation of international laws.
Hat tip to Mondoweiss for uploading the report.
January 31st, 2010 Filed under: Israel and War. 0 Comments
B’Tselem’s animated short on why Israel’s Gaza seige strengthens Hamas
Pretty straight forward to me.
And take a look at the real tunnels via cameras B’Tselem gave to Gazan youth to document their lives.
January 30th, 2010 Filed under: Israel. 0 Comments
Obama left peace out of the State of the Union, but he talked about it today
Obama addressed a question about Middle East peace at a town hall in Tampa, Florida, today (emphases mine). Transcript courtesy of the Jewish liaison from the office of the Vice President, whom I met in DC and who always sends me Presidential quotations she thinks I want to hear.
In a marked difference from the Bush years, I appreciate the President highlighting the intransigence of the Israeli government presently. He was delicate and fair to both sides, but I’m happy to see the President not place the blame entirely on the Palestinians.
However, it irks me to see the reiteration of “As a first step, the Palestinians have to unequivocally renounce violence and recognize Israel.” The PLO already has renounced violence and recognized Israel, during the Olso Accords, in every treaty to date, and most recently at the 2009 Fatah party convention; it is Hamas that Obama rightly notes has done neither. It is something that is said for ignorant Jews who think we still live in 2001. And you’ll notice no reciprocal applause after Obama says Israel must “acknowledge legitimate grievances and interests of the Palestinians.”
This is why I’m a local leader in J Street NYC — which launches next Thursday, Feb 4th at the Prince George Ballroom (15 West 27th Street, NYC) and where we’ll plug people immediately into projects that advance grassroots pro-peace power in New York. RSVP here!
AUDIENCE MEMBER: My question is, last night in your State of the Union address you spoke of America’s support for human rights. Then why have we not condemned Israel and Egypt’s human rights violations against the occupied Palestinian people and yet we continue to support financially with billions of dollars coming from our tax dollars?
AUDIENCE: Booo!THE PRESIDENT: Okay, now, everybody has got to be courteous, everybody is answering the question.
Let me just talk about the Middle East generally. Look — all right, everybody, come on, come on, hold on. Hold on one second, I’ve got to answer my question first, sir. Okay. I know you got — what, you got some beads on — are those New Orleans beads? Okay.
Look, look, look, the Middle East is obviously an issue that has plagued the region for centuries. And it’s an issue that elicits a lot of passions, as you heard.
Here’s my view. Israel is one of our strongest allies. It has — (applause.) Let me just play this out. It is a vibrant democracy. It shares links with us in all sorts of ways. It is critical for us and I will never waver from ensuring Israel’s security and helping them secure themselves in what is a very hostile region. (Applause.) So I make no apologies for that.
What is also true is that the plight of the Palestinians is something that we have to pay attention to, because it is not good for our security and it is not good for Israel’s security if you’ve got millions of individuals who feel hopeless, who don’t have an opportunity to get an education or get a job or what have you.
Now, the history of there is long and I don’t have time to go through the grievances of both sides in the issue. What I have said and what we did from the beginning when I came into office is to say we are seeking a two-state solution in which Israel and the Palestinians can live side by side in peace and security. (Applause.) In order to do that both sides are going to have to make compromises. (Applause.)
As a first step, the Palestinians have to unequivocally renounce violence and recognize Israel. (Applause.) And Israel has to acknowledge legitimate grievances and interests of the Palestinians. We know what a solution could look like in the region, but here’s the problem that we’re confronting right now, is that both in Israel and within the Palestinian Territories, the politics are difficult; they’re divided. The Israel government came in based on the support of a lot of folks who don’t want to make a lot of concessions. I think Prime Minister Netanyahu is actually making some effort to try to move a little bit further than his coalition wants him to go. On the other hand, President Abbas of the Palestinian Authority, who I think genuinely wants peace, has to deal with Hamas, an organization that has not recognized Israel and has not disavowed violence.
And so we are working to try to strengthen the ability of both parties to sit down across the table and to begin serious negotiations. And I think that it’s important when we’re talking about this issue to make sure that we don’t just knee-jerk, use language that is inflammatory or in some fashion discourages the possibility of negotiation. We’ve got to recognize that both the Palestinian people and Israelis have legitimate aspirations and they can be best served if the United States is helping them understand each other, as opposed to demonizing each other.
The transcript of the full 1+ hour town hall below the fold. More >>
January 28th, 2010 Filed under: Israel and Politics. 0 Comments
Notes for Israel advocates: Negativity
A colleague in the Israel advocacy field (on the right from me…far right) complained that negativity about Israel will drive young Jews away from caring about Israel. Meaning progressive Israel advocacy is bad for Jews, bad for the Jewish state.
Dude, the negativity is already there! The news is full of negative stuff regarding Israel — just open up Ynet or Haaretz or the Forward or even NY Jewish Week. Watch the Daily Show or NBC News or CNN. And the pro-Israel “education” reportage is PR fluff — fake smiley faces tacked up with predetermined agendas, transparent as the eye can see. Wishing the negativity away makes the existing pro-Israel groups look out of touch.
Any Israel advocate worth their weight in salt will not bother with this outdated and failing mode of outreach. All the outreach today has been saccharine sweetness. And young Jews are still walking away. Worse, it’s their number one complaint getting out the door. Savory and salty is needed in this mix.
The moral of the story is “be human.” If Israel pisses you off, own it. Don’t hide behind a laughable belief that a critical word from you, a Jew, will dismantle the Jewish state. If you as a pro-Israel advocate “seig heil” everything Israel does, you show that you’re not human, you’re an automaton. And no young person aspires to be an automaton. Be human, folks. Israel is a state, not a god.
January 27th, 2010 Filed under: Israel. 0 Comments
