Monday, March 31, 2008

Ontario hates Jews - it's official

Ontario has had for many decades a policy of educational discrimination - only Catholic schools get government funding, not other religious groups.

Now the human rights commission has decided it's discriminatory for the school to close on Yom Kippur. (Of course, it's not discriminatory to close on Christmas.)

This entire crusade goes to show why tenure is bad. David Noble, a particularly unpleasant person, has tenure. Among his particularly illustrious projects my senior year were a newsletter "exposing" all of York's Zionists (I was honored to make the cut) and a letter to the editor to many newspapers (the Varsity published it) attacking Sean Palter's and my editing of the Excal. (Unlike the current editors, we never had to issue an apology.)

I'm not sure who's the bigger villian: Noble, for causing trouble for anyone who dares to believe in God and the state of Israel, or the Ontario Human Rights Commission, for continuing to treat Jews like second-class citizens.

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

Blaming the victims

(Aliza's note: When I was around, we published opinion pieces, not blather disguised as a number from "Chicago" - "They had it coming/they had it coming/they only had themselves to blame...)

Jewish attack not a surprise
Written by Lama Aggad, Contributor
Wednesday, 19 March 2008
It’s no wonder why Yeshivat Merkaz HaRav Kook School was attacked.
I’m not surprised that Ala’a Hisham Abu Dhaim targeted Yeshivat Merkaz HaRav Kook School in Jerusalem.
Yeshivat Merkaz HaRav Kook School is described as a religious camp that links Judaism with Zionism. This makes it very different from any other anti-Zionist Orthodox school in Israel.
This institution established a program known as the “yeshivat hesder”. The word “hesder” means the settlement of a curriculum that combines Talmudic studies with military service.
In other words, this school has direct connections with the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), and its graduating students are those whom are committing a holocaust in Gaza in the Palestinians eyes.
This school strengthens the idea on its students and graduates of the land of Israel from the Euphrates to the Nile, as well as the need to make this land a “religious land,” which means there should not be any right to return for the Palestinians that were expelled from their land.
The school has around 500 students aged 18 to 30. Many of its past graduates went on to found other similar religious schools in the West Bank settlements which are described as racist among the Orthodox Jews.
In the eyes of the Palestinians, it was the IDF who started the holocaust in Gaza, and the Palestinians are simply targeting the source of that attack.
After this incident, thousands went out protesting in Jerusalem cheering “death to the Arabs”. Note here that they’re wishing death to all the Arabs whether they are Palestinians or not. This makes many understand, or at least assume, that the teachings of many of those whom have protested are against the Arabs as a whole, not just against the Palestinians.
Let’s not forget the famous quote from the former Israeli prime minister Menachem Begin in his speech to the Knesset on June 25, 1982: “[The Palestinians] are beasts walking on two legs.”

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Dersh is right, yet again

On CNN today, Alan Dershowitz (yes, one of the men who got OJ off) said that Gov. Spitzer should fight prosecution, and NOT resign. After all, he points out, Bill got away with it.

My husband also noted that Eliot Spitzer did very little in comparison - the police chief of Tehran got caught in bed with six hookers.

Ari: "What happened? They all rolled over and one fell out?"

And I thought that Ahmadinejad said there were no hookers in Iran. Oh wait, that's gay people.

My final thought is about Hillary, of course. Given that she's senator and he's governor of the same state, at some point she's going to have to comment. She isn't right now. But he's not on the list of people who've endorsed her, anymore.

Saturday, March 01, 2008

Freedom v. reckless endangerment

For all that the British press get criticized for terrorizing their celebs and royals, it was an American who let the cat out of the bag that the man third in line for the British throne was fighting in Afghanistan, defeating a press embargo agreed upon by many British news outlets, AP and CNN.

Freedom of the press may be a right, but it must also be a responsibility. The press doesn't exist to self-glorify, to make Matt Drudge a mint, or to spread tall tales, kindergarten-style. If your goal to inform the people means you're willing to recklessly endanger the life of troops, you should find another career.

Perhaps all Drudge is worthy of scooping is Mint Chocolate Chip.