The Mandeloscope

Protests in Moldova Explode, With Help of Twitter

2009-04-08T13:31:00.001-07:00

A sea of young people used text messages and the Internet to appear out of nowhere to protest Communist leaders.

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Obama's Metastatic Gaffe

2008-05-24T10:45:00.001-07:00

How a campaign misstep grew to become a foreign policy cornerstone.

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The Miracle, at 60

2008-05-17T08:08:00.001-07:00

Israel's crime is not its policies but its insistence on living. On the day the Arabs - and the Palestinians in particular - make a collective decision to accept the Jewish state, there will be peace, as Israel proved with its treaties with Egypt and Jordan. Until that day, every "peace process," however well meaning, will come to nothing.

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Washington's Battle Over Israel's Birth

2008-05-07T12:34:00.001-07:00

Remembering the epic struggle over how to respond to Israel's declaration of independence.

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Yossi Harel, Who, Defying British, Brought Jews to Palestine

2008-04-30T22:45:00.001-07:00

Mr. Harel renamed the rickety ship he commanded Exodus 1947 and sailed it to legend as a symbol of the righteousness of the mission by Jews to settle Palestine in the face of British opposition.

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The Speech: A Brilliant Fraud

2008-03-21T11:02:00.001-07:00

Elegantly crafted and delivered, Obama's race speech left key questions unanswered. Thank you, Charles Krauthammer, for shedding some clear light on Senator Obama's moral mirkiness.

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Sarkozy Stirs Anger With Holocaust Curriculum

2008-02-16T08:49:00.001-08:00

France's president touched off protests with a plan to have students learn the life stories of children the Nazis killed. Good! Finally, a French president with balls and some moral clarity.

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US hails Hezbollah leader's death -- and, boy, so do I!

2008-02-13T17:43:00.001-08:00

The US has said it welcomes the killing of a top Hezbollah commander implicated in numerous bomb attacks and a wave of hostage-taking in Lebanon in the 1980s -- and so do I. Hip hip hooray! Let's send all of Hezbollah's terrorists to god in this way. Whoever did it, kudos to you, man!

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First Israeli Resolution Accepted

2007-12-12T09:18:00.001-08:00

A committee of the General Assembly for the first time passed an Israeli resolution, one proposing that developed countries make their agricultural know-how more available. It is about time! After all, Israel and Jews have done so much good for this world. And kudos to the UN for finally having a moment of clarity.

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John Bolton: Man, I love this guy!

2007-11-03T23:50:00.001-07:00

A New York Times interview with John Bolton. We need more people like this, who can think straight and say what they mean. Asked why he thinks Iran shouldn’t have nuclear weapons, he said "When you have a regime that would be happier in the afterlife than in this life, this is not a regime that is subject to classic theories of deterrence." Right!

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Harvard's Project on Managing the Atom and the Nuclear Threat Initiative

2007-09-26T18:07:00.001-07:00

The good news: much progress has been made toward upgrading security for nuclear stockpiles. The bad news: the essential ingredients of nuclear weapons exist in hundreds of buildings in more than 40 countries, and terrorists are actively trying to get a nuclear bomb or the materials to make one.

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Middle East Volcano: Triggered with North Korean 'Cement'?

2007-09-21T08:56:00.001-07:00

On Sept. 6, something important happened in northern Syria. Problem is, no one knows exactly what. We do know that Israel carried out an air strike. Circumstantial evidence points to this being an attack on a nuclear facility provided by North Korea, which was ostensibly delivering 'cement' to a Syrian port 3 days earlier. Long way to go for cement

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Israel Wiped Off the Map at the UN - Shame on the UN and Kofi Annan

2007-09-06T18:03:00.001-07:00

As the "map of Palestine" without the state of Israel stands in the background, Secretary-General Kofi Annan addresses the public meeting at UN Headquarters. The anniversary of the UN partition vote that survivors of the concentration camps celebrated, has been described by Secretary-General Annan as "a day of mourning and a day of grief."

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Libya Set to Head UN Anti-Racism Conference

2007-09-06T17:37:00.001-07:00

Libya is the sole candidate for the post of Chair of a United Nations anti-racism conference to be held in Geneva later this month, upsetting human rights groups who recalled the fatal consequences to the Commission on Human Rights when it chose Libya in 2003. According to diplomats, a meeting yesterday by the Human Rights Council’s five regional groups also named Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Russia as among the 15 bureau members who will oversee preparatory deliberations for a 2009 gathering to follow up on the controversial Durban conference of 2001.Some human rights groups are expressing alarm at the conference leadership, which is to be voted in before the June 25 session. “Choosing Colonel Khaddafi to head a world anti-racism conference is like appointing a pyromaniac to be town fire chief,” said Hillel Neuer, executive director of UN Watch, a human rights monitoring organization based in Geneva, Switzerland.

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Durban Revisited?

2007-09-06T16:07:00.001-07:00

This news alert from Honest Reporting deals with the Durban conference and plans for Durban II. Also, France2 still refuses to release the unedited video tapes ("rushes") that its Palestinian cameraman, Talal abu Rahmah, sent them on September 30 and October 1, 2000 from Gaza that became the footage used to allege Israel's deliberate murder of Mohammed al-Dura. As this issue is played out in the French courts, you are invited to add your signature to a petition calling for the release of the France2 rushes.

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A Comprehensive Collection of Jimmy Carter's Errors

2007-08-28T21:02:00.001-07:00

On Nov. 27, 2006, Jimmy Carter appeared on Larry King Live to discuss his book, Palestine: Peace not Apartheid. During the interview, Carter repeated an assertion that he has made in various venues: "Everything in the book, I might say, is completely accurate." Here, CAMERA has compiled a detailed and inclusive list of factual errors from Carter’s book and media appearances. The list will be updated as CAMERA comes across any further errors of fact made by the former president.

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God's Jewish Warriors - CNN's Abomination

2007-08-28T20:25:00.001-07:00

The first program in the series, "God's Jewish Warriors," is one of the most grossly distorted programs to appear on mainstream American television in many years. It is false in its basic premise equating Jewish (and Christian) religious fervency with that of Muslims heard endorsing suicide-killing.

CNN's Christiane Amanpour has done a fine job of revealing her anti-Jewish bias through a dumbfoundingly oversimplistic case for moral equivalence. Check out CAMERA's critique below.

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Great 'cosmic nothingness' found

2007-08-26T11:32:00.001-07:00

Astronomers have found an enormous void in space that measures nearly a billion light-years across.This discovery thus proves my theory that the universe is a giant bagel. Finally, we found the hole in the middle. For those of you who may be convinced, let me assure you I was just joking. Really, the universe isn't a bagel. Sorry.

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'Blasphemous' balls anger Afghans: Oy vey, give me a break!

2007-08-26T10:44:00.001-07:00

A demonstration has been held in south- east Afghanistan accusing US troops of insulting Islam. The US military said the idea had been to give something for Afghan children to enjoy and they did not realise it would cause offence. [read the story or digg it below]

Oh, come on! Surely the mullahs and their groupies can realize the difference between intended harm and intended good, even if the latter is inadvertently offensive. How many times have I been invited over to someone's place to dinner and they offer me something I can't eat because I'm a vegan. Do I foam at the mouth and call them infidels and declare war. No, I remind them that I'm a vegan and that, although their offering was very kind, I must refuse it given my moral and ethical sensibilities.

The poor Afghanis who were so offended by the U.S.'s kind and generous gesture to make their youth a little happier should similarly realize that the intention was good. Instead of whining like angry frustrated children, they should engage as adults with their culturally distinct aid providers. Thank them for their offerings but also let them know that in the future it might not be such a good idea to put the name of their prophet on something that gets kicked around in the dirt.

Guess it's just another one of those sad funny stories of human misunderstanding coming face to face with human intolerance.

Now back to my only slightly warm bagel.

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If You're a Christian, Muslim or Jew - You are Wrong

2007-08-11T01:01:00.001-07:00

No holds barred against all 3 western religions.

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Why Do Arabs Lie So Much About Jews?

2007-08-11T00:34:00.001-07:00

Here are a bunch of farcical lies that have been told by the Arab media and leaders regarding Israel and the Jews.

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Green Eggs and Ham, a Bright Jew I am

2007-07-25T16:58:00.000-07:00

When someone asks you what you believe in, please don't say being human. Here's why.

Atheist or Ignostic?

2007-07-24T19:04:00.000-07:00

My reply to a reply to my post yesterday on alternative names for atheists.

Are You a Vegetarian?

2007-07-23T20:34:00.000-07:00

A methodological note on asking the aforementioned question on a forum. That's all.

What Do You Say When Someone Sneezes?

2007-07-23T19:02:00.000-07:00

The all important question was posed on RichardDawkins.net and here's my oh-so-serious answer.

Alternatives Names for Atheists

2007-07-23T18:19:00.000-07:00

As you can see from this and my last post, I've been causing trouble on RichardDawkins.net today. Here's my take on the forum thread "Alternative names for atheists." In a word (not really), use your head, have some balls, cultivate a sense of humor. All in all, sound advice from a Bright Jew.

Letter to an Anti-Vegan Moron

2007-07-23T14:11:00.000-07:00

This forum post on RichardDawkins.net elicited this response from me.

Strange Dream circa 1997-1998

2007-07-16T08:50:00.000-07:00

I awoke this morning from a dream in which I was walking along a sidewalk. I came up behind some people who were walking slowly and, as I naturally do, I overtook them and continued my brisk pace ahead. A second after I accomplished this modest tactical maneuver, I heard a young voice call out "Mummy!" As I turned around to look, I saw a young child run towards me. The child had pale skin covering his entire face. No eyes, no mouth, no nostrils. Yet he somehow sensed my location and ran straight for me. The image of this faceless living mannequin boy terrified me and filled me with disgust and I awoke just as my own mother was closing the door to the washroom.

Elements of My Dream - April 25, 2005

2007-07-15T23:02:00.000-07:00

The airport scene

I arrive at an airport terminal. As I approach the check-in counter, there is an announcement about some problem, a delay of flights, I think. I notice that there is a free counter and make a B-line for that counter, but there is an older couple that also wants to go to that counter. I beat them to it, but the couple stands at the counter desk by my side. This causes some tension because it is clear that they are hoping to capitalize on their presence there once the clerk arrives. The clerk arrives and serves me, but the man is clearly perturbed and vents his hostility passively by sitting down right next to where I am standing and extends his leg so that this huge foot is directly obstructing the space where it would be natural for my foot to rest. I cannot seem to place my foot without his foot touching mine. When I confront him with him passive aggressiveness by asking him to move his foot, he is evasive. Clearly, his intent at this point is to annoy me as he is annoyed at my beating him to the desk. Somehow this scene ends and I “proceed” into the main scene of the dream sequence—at least as I recall it.

The hotel scene

The hotel scene is preceded by events in the dream that I can barely recall. My only sense is that upon arriving at the hotel, I was greeted by a string of misfortunes or painful experiences that left me in a dire, confused state.

I believe that I arrive at the hotel with at least one other person, a female I think, possibly two. However, I cannot recall these characters. Nor am I sure whether I know this person or these people in real life.

We enter a hotel room illegally without registering. There is the sense that this room has been used by others before us in this manner and we follow suit. The key feeling characterizing this part of the dream is uncertainty. As people arrive at the room, we are uncertain who they are and what they know about us. This sequence, I sense, had at least three or four visitor episodes. However, I cannot recall the early ones well. What is clear is that our efforts to obscure our identity as illegal guests are successful. We somehow manage to say the right things so that our façade is maintained. I recall that the penultimate visitors enter. I think they were two men, but one was for sure. Although I don’t remember his characteristics, I do recall that he rolled a joint and started smoking it in the room.

The end of the hotel scene and the dream

My most vivid recollection is the end of the dream. I am in the room with the woman or women that accompanied me there, and the pot-smoking man and his companion. I am sitting on a bed, or chair, or sofa that is adjacent to the door entering the room from the hall. The door has slats on it that are like Venetian blinds. They allow light from the outer hallway to enter. I am sitting looking at the light enter these slats and a foreboding feeling comes over me that the façade will come to an end soon. I then see that the light from the slats is obstructed, knowing that there is a person on the other side of the door. There is a knock and then a middle-aged woman enters the room. Without engaging in discussion, she tells us to leave, knowing the façade. We begin to gather our belongings knowing that we must leave. However, before we leave, I explain to her that my intention was not altogether malicious. I tell her that when I arrived at the room, I was in a very bad state, hardly able to function. I explain that during the days in which I stayed in this room, I recovered my sense of coherence. This of course does not excuse my actions, but I wanted to let her know that some good was served through the deceit, and that I appreciated the opportunity that was provided. I wanted her to know that my intentions were not to make a fool of her by tricking her. In short, the illusion served a positive function, at least for me.

Soon after, I awoke.

Bright Jew - An idea

2007-07-04T00:53:00.001-07:00

Okay, so here's some food for thought. An icon that merges The Brights insignia with the Israeli flag and the words "Bright Jew."

What is a Bright Jew? Well, naturally (no pun intended), a person who is a Bright AND a Jew. And, as if it's not hard enough to define what a Jew is, what the hell is a Bright? Well, my fine-feathered friends, a Bright is "a person who has a naturalistic worldview. A bright's worldview is free of supernatural and mystical elements. The ethics and actions of a bright are based on a naturalistic worldview."

A Bright Jew, therefore, is a person who defines themselves as a Jew on nonreligious grounds and, in fact, does not subscribe to supernatural beliefs but rather sees the world in naturalistic or purely physical terms.

Egad, does that mean I am a Bright Jew?

In a word, yes!

The Revolutionary Path of Hamas

2007-07-03T22:16:00.001-07:00

Sources: Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), June 22, 2007; Arab News (Saudi Arabia), June 22, 2007.

You go girl!

2007-07-02T00:24:00.000-07:00

Amen...

John Lee Hooker: Oy, Is this dude cool or what?

2007-07-02T00:08:00.000-07:00

Hobo Blues

yeah....

Shame on the New York Times and Washington Post

2007-06-30T09:58:00.000-07:00

Here's a letter I wrote this morning to the New York Times and Washington Post regarding their poor decision to give Ahmed Yousef, an advisor to the leader of the Hamas terrorist organization, Ismail Haniyeh. A review of the cases is available from HonestReporting.

"Dear New York Times and Washington Post Representatives:

I find it morally reprehensible that you would allow a high-ranking terrorist planner like Ahmed Yousef to use your media outlets as a stage for Hamas propaganda at such a critical time. To give the likes of Yousef the opportunity to use your newspapers as a platform for their influence operations is a failure of moral standing on your part and a naive expression of freedom of expression at best. While you are at it, why don't you invite Mahmoud Ahmedinejad to guest edit a special opinion section on human rights in Iran or on the moral bankruptcy of the West? Perhaps it would be nice, while you're at it, to invite some high-ranking members of neo-Nazi movement to speak as well. The choices you make will not fool people who can understand the fact that the complexity of the world necessitates moral tradeoffs. We realize that your editorial decisions reflect your judgment and your moral and ethical fiber, and your decision to give Yousef a platform to launch an influence operations campaign casts a dark cloud over your judgment and values. Unfortunately, the damage is done and cannot be undone. All you could do is to attempt to repair the damage and your own credibility by, at least, giving the victims of your poor judgment a chance to air their views. The greatest need in this regard is to give those who are fighting without violence for justice against the terrorism directed at innocent Israelis by Palestinian terrorist organizations. Specifically, I urge you to invite a representative of the Shurat HaDin Israel Law Center to give his or her perspective on the conflict in that region. Shurat HaDin provides legal representation to assists Israeli victims of Palestinian terrorism to legally fight back through the justice system. Unlike Hamas, it does not strive to kill innocent civilians or to destroy a state that only would like to live in peace with its neighbors. Again, there is no way to undo the aid you have already given to the terrorist organization, Hamas. All you could do now is to try to mend the damage. I personally will be watching for evidence of this.

Sincerely yours,

[my real name, Ph.D.]

Yearly Checkup

2007-06-22T07:15:00.000-07:00

I'm off to see my GP for a yearly checkup. Wish me luck :-o

Pilose; yanawanameen!

2007-06-17T11:30:00.000-07:00

The word of the day on Word Imperfect is pilose. Here's the definition I submitted:

pi.lose (pī'lōs) adj. To be full of PIL. PIL, in turn, has two standard meanings:

1. PIL refers to a passenger information list and is also known as a flight manifest. Pilose in this sense refers to the state of being full of such lists, as would be true of most flight attendants; e.g., "The pilose flight attendant spilled coffee on the man is seat 24C."

2. PIL also refers to Publishing Interchange Language, a standard for document interchange that defines the placement of text and graphics objects on the page. Interchange processes that rely on the PIL standard are commonly referred to by experts in the field as pilose interchangers or, simply "pilinters."

The Palestinian's Two State Solution

2007-06-16T09:25:00.000-07:00

Israel and the West have long favored a two-state solution to solve the the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.

Yassir Arafat kept the illusion of intent a reality for decades under his rule, although he always found a way to wiggle out of a peace deal when one seemed nearly achievable.

In the post-Arafat era, things have changed. The elections that brought Hamas into power cast a dark cloud over the prospect for peace between Palestinians and Israelis. As committed as Israel has been to reaching a two-state peace deal, one needs another side to negotiate with if a diplomatic solution is ever to be reached.

Hamas, with its commitment to Israel's total destruction (not to mention the destruction of its Jewish inhabitants), could never play that role given its mission to annihilate Israel. Indeed, its destructive goal of annihilating Israel would seem, by its actions, to be of greater important to than its constructive goal of building a Palestinian state.

In the post-Hamas election victory, Fatah, under Mahmoud Abbas, or Abu Mazen as he is called in the region, has had virtually no power to move ahead with diplomatic efforts. The Hamas victory effectively designated the Palestinian "state" as being run by a democratically elected terrorist organization -- a result that led not only to diplomatic freeze but also a economic freeze, since countries are, for good reason, reluctant to provide economic support to terrorist organizations (regardless of whether or not they run countries).

Nor did political victory moderate Hamas's stance toward Israel. Rather, just the opposite occurred. They took Israel's decision (under then-prime minister Ariel Sharon) to the withdraw Israeli settlers from Gaza as perhaps a sign of weakness and certainly as an opportunity to attack Israel from a strategic vantage point. And, although their rocket attacks have not brought about mass casualties yet, that is only due to a present lack of capability, not of intent.

Despite its haughty and bellicose behavior, Hamas was from the start a let down to its people, unable to provide even the pallid level of economic support that Palestinians had access to under Arafat and, for a brief time, Abu Mazen.

Indeed, it was largely economic deprivation that put pressure on Hamas to form a unity government with Fatah. The hope was that by linking with its more moderate and secular rival, the international aid faucet that had been shut off would begin to flow once again.

The five-day civil war that seemed to have ended yesterday put an end to that dream -- for Hamas at least.

Hamas's victory in Gaza and Fatah's consolidation of power in the West Bank is an historic turning point for the Palestinians, and perhaps for Israel and the Middle East.

From tepid enthusiasm for a two-state solution with Israel, it seems the Palestinians have orchestrated their own two-state solution: a militant Islamic state in Gaza under Hamas and a potentially moderate Arab state in the West Bank under Fatah.

Although the civil war this past week lasted only five days, the Palestinian version of the two-state solution has been long in the making. The primary driver has been its first and second intifada against Israel, which forced the latter to curtail travel between the two Palestinian regions for basic security reasons.

Thus, Palestinian terrorism against Israel was the key driver of the Palestinian split. It forced Israel to impose a wedge between the two unconnected regions, which with the passing of over a decade have grown increasingly culturally, politically, and economically distinct.

The civil war last week was therefore not the prompter of Palestinian division. Rather, it was the final collapse of an untenable dream. One made untenable by a preoccupation with blaming Israel, hating Israel and Jews, and seeking revenge and destruction more than conciliation and construction.

What the implications of the Palestinian two-state solution will be is now the question in everyone's mind, not the least, the Israelis.

Introducing The Mandeloscope with a Poem by Dr. Vliperdius

2007-06-12T20:30:00.000-07:00

Ah, yes, my very first post. What shall I say? How about a poem to kick things off. Yeah, that's it! A poem. Well, here it goes.

If

If
Is this:
A finite string
of and and or.

A disjunction
of conjunction
and
conjunction
and
conjunction.

If x then y
(and if If don't lie),
then
x and y;
not x and y;
not x, nor y.

And of these three
Just one! I sigh.
Just one indeed
will Truth draw nigh.
The other two
It shall deny!

But why, If,
are you so rude
as to preclude
the fourth conjunction
with disregard
without compunction?
Is barring x, not y
your function?

And, if not y
then x,
Poor x!
Unabated,
shall it be so fated
as to necessarily be
negated?
The conclusion drawn:
Validly annihilated!

If,
I humbly
ask:
Is this
your vision
of contraposition?

Modus this
and
Modus that
The literature on you
has grown so fat.
Your famous now
I tip my hat.
Man, I'm your biggest fan.
But face it, If,
You're the most
infamous connective
Negate all you can
I tell you, man:
You still can't deny
that.