Kesher Talk: 12/14/2003

Saturday, December 20, 2003

Hanukkah - dos kandelikas. This morning I led the whole service up to the Torah reading, for the first time. (I've led the second half of the service a number of times, but it's shorter.) At this particular minyan that includes: Birkot haShachar, Psukey D'zimrah, Shacharit (with a repetition of the Amidah, including Al-haNisim, and this pretty piyyut which I found while googling for something else and added at the last minute), Hallel, and Taking the Torah out of the Ark. Whew! Large water bottle on the bima time!

I asked for the date because there aren't that many opportunities in the year to chant Hallel in a minyan which only meets two Shabbats a month. There are many opportunities during the daily morning service, but I would only feel it was appropriate to volunteer if I were a regular minyan participant, and I haven't gotten back into the habit after moving to NYC.

And I love Hallel. And I know so many Hallel melodies by now it was way fun trying to choose among them, kind of like making a set list for a concert where people are going to chime in on most of the songs.

It went well, considering I was fighting a cold and was short on sleep. I stayed on pitch fairly well, which is an achievement for me, since the traditional Shacharit nusach has so many changes of key, and I was throwing in melodic Hanukkah references as well, not to mention all the Hallel melodies. My voice is pretty but not particularly strong. I have a hard time being loud and on pitch at the same time, but I do well in the chapel where we meet because it's a small space and I don't have to try to project. (An upcoming challenge will be to lead musaf in February at another minyan, in an echo-y church basement with 3x the attendance.) The only time I really lost it was when I started one Sim Shalom melody, everyone thought I was starting another one, so I let them carry it forward, but they stopped in the middle waiting for me to pick up the next line. So I had to fake it since I didn't really know the melody they were using, and to add to the fun both melodies were of the type where to get it to scan right you have to know when to repeat certain words. So there was general confusion for about 15 seconds while we groped our way to the end of the paragraph.

But all will be smoother next time, and I can concentrate more on kavannah than on pronouncing words right.

More on the Al HaNisim insert in the Amidah.

UPDATE: And I didn't get laryngitis until the next day. (Not related to singing for an hour with few interruptions - related to this sort-of-flu thing that's been hovering in the back of my throat since the temp settled into the 30s.)

Friday, December 19, 2003

Hanukkah - una kandelika. The Festival of Lights begins tonight, and it's also Shabbat. Lots of candle-lighting going on - More on how to do it correctly.

Here's a great resource on Hanukkah, and here are some upscale recipes (i.e. non-greasy yam latkes with mustard seeds and curry) for the holiday. Omigod: a frightening number of latke recipes.

Variations on transliteration of the name of the holiday. (i.e. how to spell it.)

UPDATE: I'm lighting a virtual text menorah every day on this blog, but Meryl is lighting a virtual visual menorah on hers. Check in with her as she adds a candle every day. Our menorahs are very similar: the brass/turquoise coating and general design, and mine has a similar Lion of Judah, but in a plastic insert that looks like mosaic. I wonder if they came from the same manufacturer. I've had my menorah since I was about five - there's a black&white picture of me and my little brother lighting ours in our first house in Dallas.

Look! In the sky! Pigs! Well, well! Look what the EU did. The PLO finally "crossed a red line" of theirs.

Early this week the PLO delegation to the UN distributed a draft resolution that said: "The PLO representative in the UN is the representative of the Palestinian territories occupied by Israel since 1967, including East Jerusalem." The resolution was meant to be voted on in the General Assembly on Wednesday, in a routine affirmation of the credentials of countries represented in the UN.

But the EU was vehemently opposed to the resolution, regarding it as an attempt to undermine Israel's legitimacy. EU representatives met with PLO Ambassador Nasser al-Kidwa, telling him that exploiting the routine votes on country credentials crossed "a red line."

UN sources said that as a result of a direct appeal to France, French Foreign Minister Dominique de Villepin ordered the French delegation to join the rest of the EU countries to oppose the PLO legation's resolution.

So they had to nudge France to fall in line. Figures.

Blogmeet and Austin nostalgia. LGF's resident parodist extraordinaire, Iowahawk, started a blog. I met Iowahawk for a drink when he was in NYC on business last week. As Tim Blair says, "he is possessed of more cool than is healthy for any human." I would say rockabilly ratpack hipster secret agent. But unpretentious, nice.

Turns out we both lived in Austin at around the same time. He lived in the nabe near the Dell JCC campus that was still under construction when he moved, where I hang out a lot when I'm there, since my synagogue and half my friends are in that part of town. I lived 2 blocks from Texicalli Grill and where Gueros used to be, until I moved, and he used to hang out in my nabe a lot because he was a habitue at the Continental Club.

Anyway, his blog gives Scott Ott and Laurence Simon some serious competition in the ROTFLMHO beverage-all-over-the-monitor category. Check it out.

Several Jewish in-jokes for your blogging pleasure. The Yiddishkeit Code (Formerly known as "The Hebrew Geek Code") This is an old one but still funny.

Top Ten Jewish Organizational Responses to Saddam's Capture. Pretty funny.

Thursday, December 18, 2003

Case studies in frothing. Best roundup of examples of Bush Derangement Syndrome. What's BDS, you might ask if you have a life and don't read political blogs obsessively. All is explained in the link.

A bit of political humor for the listening audience. British advice (I guess that should be "humour") and American ingenuity in spinning Saddam's capture.

Tim Blair's crowd have further suggestions for What to Say If . . . :

The list is good, but misses out on one thing:

What to say if Saddam Hussein is tried and found guilty and sentenced to death.
# Sure, Saddam Hussein was a brutal dictator, but by sentencing him to death, how are we any better? There is another way: the way of forgiveness and reconciliation. Saddam Hussein is a poor, suffering human being, like the rest of us, and an execution would demean us all.

And read on from there.

Best line from the Spectator article:

. . . perhaps the most notable of the day's reactions came from the deposed dictator himself, just minutes after he was apprehended. A defiant Saddam confronted his U.S. captors, saying, "I'm not worried. My sons will get me out of this. I wouldn't be surprised if they're coming to my rescue this very minute. What's everybody looking at?"

UPDATE: That last was parody, but this is real, and is typical behavior for captured megalomaniac dictators, I believe.

Harassment is a bipartisan pleasure. Remember how extremist anti-abortion groups publicize the names of doctors who perform abortions and encourage people to harass them, even assassinate them? Well, someone is publishing on Portland Indymedia the names and contect information for all Bush donors in the city who made at least $1000 contributions, and I bet he or she would be livid at being compared to an anti-abortion terrorist. Well, no one on the thread is advocating bodily harm (yet), but suggestions for annoying the Bush donors include the following:

Is it legal to send them a bag of shit? You know this time of year one can start out with it frozen so it does not smell in the beginning. Just a thought. Clearly they like it.

When I came across this thread earlier today, I noticed a name that was familar. I called some mutual friends to let them know, and they too checked to this website. Wow! Were we ever shocked, as it do very much seem that this person listed is a person we know. It is disgusting that this person puts on a face to us that is at total variance to a Bush supporter, and yet, behind this false mask is a Republican contributor who seemly is ashamed to let us know. Well, thank you for publishing this list, as we have ever intent to confront this individual and give them a richly deserved belittling. . . . If these people have got somuch money to waste on a loser like Bush, then by God they can help contribute to the concerns that we uphold, and we're not above goading them or shaming them on this Bush bullshit!

I guess if you don't wear a gimme cap and drive a pickup, you're wearing a "false mask." How dare those Bush supporters "put on faces" that confuse their stereotyping friends!? Anyway, sounds like some heated political debate is about to erupt in the town of Portland, and that's a good thing. But extortion and intimidation are not.

a social committe should form dedicated towards enlightening neighbors about the financial contributions of these people. . . . a nice day of anti caroling should be arranged in their neighborhood. How about the words of " We wish you a merry X mas" adapted to this news breaking project. How embarrassed would you be in carolers were singing about you and your financial backings of politicians which is essentially lobbying. I think a lot of people would care. If done humorously enough you could get people lurede away from corporate media!

Well, you folks would have to grow a sense of humor first. I have a feeling a heavy handed political parody of "We Wish You a Merry Xmas" won't win any hearts and minds.

This comment made me chuckle:

I am ging through all 219 pages of names, by hand, because I have a lot of coffee and spare time. I am up to the "L"s now, and I have a question:what the hell is with people supporting both Bush and Wyden (a democrat)? Many, if not most, of the Wyden contributors are also Bush contributors? WTF?

Yup, people have been known to vote for officials from different political parties at the same time. They're called "Independents." And you know something else? A lot of registered Democrats are going to vote for George W Bush next fall. Whether or not you send them bags of shit in the mail.

(via LGF comments)

UPDATE: LGF made an entry about this, linking to a different post on Portland Indymedia by the same guy. Read the LGF comment thread to find out another reason why this is a case of not learning from history, turnabout is fair play, or "it's okay if my side does it." Glen Wishard gives many examples of (mostly left-leaning) organizations claiming fear of harassment to get exemptions from full disclosure of their donor lists. So although the information posted on the Indymedia thread is in the public records, there does exist -aside from the examples of anti-abortion extremists - a sizable precedent for fearing harassment if a political donor list is published. I would think especially if people are openly advocating harassment, as they are on these Indymedia threads.

Terrorists in exile. Ever wonder what happened to the terrorists who had a stand-off with the Israeli Army in the Church of the Nativity a couple of years ago, and were deported to Cyprus and Europe? Well, here's what happened to one of them.

(Incidentally, the Nativity stand-off was what put the International Solidarity Movement in the limelight.)

Wednesday, December 17, 2003

David Aaronovich elegaically compares Saddam to one of the deposed dictator's predecessors, Nebuchadnezzar.

This bum was Saddam? . . . If the disordered tyrant seemed in any way familiar, it is because he also appeared in William Blake's picture of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon, brought low as described in the Book of Daniel: "He was driven from men, and did eat grass as oxen, and his body was wet with the dew of heaven, till his hairs were grown like eagles' feathers, and his nails like birds' claws."

For a secular still-Leftist English Jew, Aaronovich doesn't seem to be so removed from his Jewish heritage. I can't imagine Hitchins quoting from the Bible. Read the whole thing.

Test your Google skills. Tim Blair is running a contest:

Your quest: To locate people who before the war argued that regime change was an issue only for the Iraqi people -- and who now argue that Saddam’s trial should not be held in Iraq.

Responses are accumulating in the comment thread.

Brrrring . . . the comfy chair! Bill Hobbs notes that the UN has enough money to commission stupid chairs for its Geneva internet summit.

Do you want Europe to choose the next US President? A lot of people around the world are interested in the US 2004 Presidential election, and some candidates are taking advantage of that fact.

A Swedish Web operation thought it would be a good idea to solicit contributions from Europeans to the liberal American group MoveOn.org. "One dollar per EU-citizen would suffice to raise more money than the entire Bush campaign budget for the elections in 2000," reasoned the Web site. "Compare this price to the cost of having Bush in the White House."

. . . In some cases, such contributions would be illegal; in other cases, they would be legal but would give the unhelpful impression that MoveOn is orchestrating a European takeover of the United States.

On Dec 12, Moveon.org realized the implications of its international support and canned the idea.

As of Tuesday morning, Democracy Aid 04 was running this message on its website: "Last night Move On contacted us and asked us to change our campaign message. As of now they no longer accept contributions from non-US citizens/permanent resident aliens. . . . The (now deleted) Democracy Aid message to readers noted, "One year from now, on November 2nd 2004, the next American Presidential elections will be held. For the first time ever, because of the Internet, it is possible for non-American private citizens to participate in the campaign process.

"We claim that this unique opportunity should not be wasted, since the rest of the world is very much affected by the choice of president. What the world needs is an American President who favours multilateral solutions, and who actively supports the UN's Millennium goals. George W. Bush is not that man. This has become very clear during the last three years.

The article also mentions sites specifically to raise money for Dean and Clarke.

So we know that - according to the Center for Responsive Politics - Democrats have more big donors than Republicans.

those little guys giving less than $200 to federal candidates, parties or leadership political action committees contributed 64 percent of their money to Republicans. By contrast, those fat cats giving $1 million or more contributed a lopsided 92 percent to Democrats. The only group favoring Democrats, in fact, were contributors giving more than $100,000.

For example, George Soros. Now some Democratic candidates also have these foreign contributions.

It will be interesting to see if Bush can outspend them. But shining a spotlight on their goals and methods might be just as effective. I imagine many Americans will feel a bit queasy when they find out that people who aren't American citizens are trying to determine our Presidential election. It is also worth pointing out that some Democrats (I didn't see any foreign campaign sites for Joe Leiberman) feel they aren't going to get all the support they need from the people they intend to govern.

(story via Country Store)

Big Brother is blocking you. If the UN takes over the internet this is the kind of stuff we'll have to look forward to.

Tuesday, December 16, 2003

About time. Indymedia tries to spin the capture of Saddam, and some former readers get fed up.

(via LGF comments)

I know you're a racist aparthied state, but what am I? Part II. Remember Tony Judt?
The NYU prof revived an old argument for a "bi-national" state of Israelis and Palestinians, which was most ably refuted here. Now Judt responds to critics, among them Michael Walzer and Abraham Foxman.

(via Tal G)

Mutually assured humiliation. I have often facetiously remarked that if the Palestinians want to excuse their bigoted destructive behavior by claiming unbearable "humiliation" - well, two can play that game. Not only do they try to blow us up on a regular basis, they tear up my holy places, deny my history, lie about and incite violence against my people in global forums, and organize voting blocks of nations to gang up on us at the UN.

It's too much to bear! So hey - I feel humiliated too! And enraged! Yeah! Maybe I'll start blowing up mosques and beating up random Arabs on the street. What? You say I should make a distinction between peaceful Arabs going about their business and actual terrorists? You say a mosque in New York has nothing to do with suicide bombers in the disputed territories? Oh, I get it. Only one side in this war is expected to behave in a restrained civilized fashion. How convenient.

Meryl expresses this concept much more elegantly than I could:

If Israel's actions are causing adverse reactions to the Jews throughout Europe, why aren't they causing attacks on Jews in America? America has a large Muslim population scattered over many states. Some of them must be radical, Jew-hating Muslims. There are certainly anti-Israeli Muslims in Paterson, Jersey City, Detroit, northern Virginia, and New York City. So riddle me this, Eurocrats, Indymidiots, Chomskyites, and the rest of the Blame Israel crew: Why are there not more attacks on Jews by Muslims in America who are enraged by the actions of the Israeli government? Why are there not more attacks on Muslims by others in America who are enraged by Al Qaeda's attacks on Americans?

I'll tell you why not: Because it is not acceptable behavior in the United States. Because there is a strong police presence that seeks out the perpetrators. Because there is a strong sense of community that will not allow such hatred to commence, whether it is in defense of Muslim women shopping in the aftermath of 9/11, or a group of midwesterners putting menorahs in their windows to protest anti-Semitism in their towns. Because, with few exceptions, the authorities here in America will investigate hate crimes and call a spade a spade, instead of going out of their way to insist that an explosion in front of a synagogue is purely coincidental, or that if only Israel would stop "humiliating" the Palestinians and give them their own state, Muslims in Europe would stop attacking Jews.

Bullshit.

Right. And may I point out that here in the States, any government official who suggested that individuals respond to fear of attack by hiding their religious symbols would be laughed out of office?

Monday, December 15, 2003

The end of a tyrant.

I don't know what got into me but I really felt sorry for the man. For the first time in years he looked so human. He was just a typical helpless 66-year-old Iraqi at that moment. I stared hardly at his eyes and tried to convince myself that this was the same man who destroyed Iraq and sent millions to their deaths. I found myself talking to the screen "Why did you have to do this to yourself?", "Why did you have to put us into all of this?", "Why didn't you fight back or at least kill yourself to spare us these images?"

Zayed, I had the same reaction when I saw the picture: pity. That's okay. A little pity mixed with the contempt and rage is a good thing.

UPDATE: Revulsion is good too. Check out Saddam and Yassir enjoying a comradely hug. (Yassir, you slut!)

The rise of Lieberman. Reading lots of blog comments in the wake of Saddam's capture, I noticed a shift in attitude toward Joseph Lieberman. Namely, people realizing what a class act he is under that somewhat nebbishy schoolmarmish exterior. No, the guy has no charisma. But he has integrity.

First reaction this morning when I was informed, "Hallelujah, praise the Lord." I mean, this is something that I have been working on with a lot of other people, advocating and praying for for more than 12 years since the Gulf War of '91. This man was a homicidal maniac, a brutal dictator, wanted to dominate the Arab world and was supporting terrorists. He caused the deaths of more than a million people, including now 460 Americans who went to overthrow him. So this is a day of glory for the American military, American intelligence and it's a day of triumph and joy for anybody in the world who cares about freedom and human rights and peace.

. . . Russert: As you know, Governor Dean has surged to the front of the pack in the Democratic race, now called the front-runner. He was endorsed by Al Gore, the man who said three years ago that you should be the person one heartbeat away from the presidency. Why did Al Gore endorse Howard Dean and not you?

Lieberman: Well, you'd have to ask Al Gore that question. From my point of view, the last week has clarified the choice that Democrats and Independents who vote in our primaries have between Howard Dean and me. He will take this country backward to where we were before Bill Clinton transformed our party. I'm going to continue more determined than ever to fight for what's right for my party and my country. That means supporting middle-class tax cuts which he's opposed to, supporting fiscal responsibility, supporting a strong defense. And let's be real specific. On the question that we're celebrating today, Howard Dean throughout this campaign has said he wasn't sure that Saddam really represented a threat to us. At one point he said, "I suppose the Iraqis are better off with Saddam Hussein gone." I would say this, and this is a choice the voters have to make in the primaries. If Howard Dean had his way, Saddam Hussein would be power today, not in prison.

Russert: When Al Gore endorsed Howard Dean last week, he said that in terms of Iraq, "Only Howard Dean has had the good judgment, experience, and good sense to see and articulate the right choice towards Iraq." What do you say about Al Gore's judgment and those comments this morning?

Lieberman: Well, I respectfully disagree. I think that's absolutely, absolutely wrong. I mean, Al Gore and I stood together in 1991 as two of 10 Democrats who supported the Gulf War which was aimed at overthrowing Saddam and rolling him back from his invasion of Kuwait. Saddam Hussein went 12 years not keeping the promises he made at the end of that war, continuing to suppress and murder his own people and threaten the region, and support terrorism. After September 11, I said to myself even more deeply I don't want to wake up one day after Saddam Hussein, who I always felt was a ticking time bomb, take some action to kill Americans and say why didn't we knock him over when we could have? Now, we've got some challenges ahead of us. This is not over. I've criticized the Bush administration for not having had a plan for what to do the day after Saddam was overthrown. Now, we've got to seize this moment, now that he's been captured, bring in the international community to help us rebuild Iraq, ask NATO to join us in the peacekeeping so we can complete our victory over the insurgents and terrorists that are fighting us and the international community there and let the Iraqis govern themselves. That's what this was all about.

Russert: Finally, Senator, but if the economy remains strong and the capture of Saddam Hussein helps secure Iraq, how difficult will it be to beat George Bush with those two factors going his way?

Lieberman: First, Tim, this is a day for every American, including those of us who are politicians, to drop the labels. We're not Republicans. We're not Democrats. We're Americans. This is a day of triumph and joy, and it's a day of honoring those who we now can say, those Americans, who didn't die in vain in fighting Saddam Hussein and overthrowing him. But Lord knows, there's a lot of things I disagree with George Bush about, that says America needs a fresh start. The economy is in trouble, health-care crisis, education costs rising out of control, Social Security being ransacked. The fact is we need somebody who will not only be strong in the world but reconnect with our allies and create genuine security and get America going here at home. I'm that candidate, strong on defense, strong on growth, socially progressive. We need a fresh start.

Russert: You did find a way to talk about politics at the end there.

Lieberman: Only policy. You know, it was statesmanlike.

Is that not a class act?

Having said that, I will probably vote for Bush even if Lieberman gets nominated. Even though I disagree with most of Bush's domestic policies. Because the war on terrorism - for the next few years, anyway - trumps other issues, I think Bush's strategy is proving itself out, to some extent a global chess game is being played and now is not the time to switch leaders. Although I do think Lieberman agrees with Bush's strategy and would continue it.

UPDATE: Compare to Dean's latest speech:

"I congratulate our troops on capturing Saddam Hussein," Dean said at a fundraising concert that featured singers Bonnie Raitt and David Crosby. "He's a bad person and we're all better off with him in captivity. But you should know that my views on Iraq have not changed one bit." Referring to the political boost that President Bush is likely to receive from the capture of the former Iraqi dictator, Dean added, "A lot of people said, 'Oh, Saddam Hussein is caught, the campaign's over.' I don't think so."

Really? I don't remember any supporter of the war ever saying it was going to be cheap and easy to depose a dictator like Saddam and get the country back on its feet. But please send me some sources, if you can.

UPDATE: Stephen Green is all over this meme, which appears to have been invented by the media.

Sunday, December 14, 2003

We can so bicycle and chew gum at the same time. For those who think deposing Saddam meant neglecting Afganistan, the process of creating a constitution took a significant step today:

KABUL, Afghanistan -- A landmark constitutional convention began in Afghanistan on Sunday with solemn prayers, the songs of children and a stirring speech by the nation's former king, who echoed the aspirations of his war-weary countrymen with a call for unity and peace.

Some 500 delegates -- from village mullahs to Western-educated exiles -- were gathered at a huge tent in Afghanistan's battle-scarred capital, Kabul, to hammer out a new constitution in a traditional loya jirga, or grand council. Among the issues they were expected to spar over were the role of Afghan women, Islam's place in politics and the sharing of power in a nation accustomed to fighting over it.

About 300 expat Afgans returned every day this fall and 1000 warlord foot soldiers turned in their guns.
An eyewitness account from July.
Afgans for a Civil Society.
Lots more here.

Off to Israel: I'm headed on a business trip to Israel tonight--my first visit to the holy land in 14 years.

I hope to bring back lots of insightful anecdotes to share with you all next weekend...

Geez, you take even one afternoon off from the computer. . . . I get all my news from the web. I don't have a TV, I just don't turn on the radio most days, and when I moved to NYC I stopped taking a daily paper, but I scan the headlines as I pass a newsstand, knowing I'll be able to review the news in more depth once I fire up the laptop. But the downside of not having some newsy sound blathering away in the background all the time is that I'm cocooning on a snowy Sunday, I don't turn the thing on, and I miss the biggest news of 2004.

I'm kvelling. But Allah also slept in this morning, and er, he's not.
Jeff Jarvis almost slept in.

We got him says the air-traffic control tower at Basrah International Airport.

DEBKA thinks Saddam was being held captive in his grave-like hole, while his captors bargained for the prize money the US was offering, and they make a good case. OTOH, his second wife may have ratted him out.

As one would expect, tons of links on the Bush blog. Here's Bush's official statement. Tony Blair's official statement. Video of Bremer's announcement, with heart-wrenching reaction by Iraqis in the audience.

Meanwhile, Deaniacs spin frantically. Leftist Brit politicos spin frantically.

Time has a report on Saddam's initial interrogation. Meryl has the scoop on what really happened. Stryker also managed to eavesdrop on an interrogation.

Winds of Change has the usual humungous amounts of links, including some background on how Saddam was captured. Tacitus and Lee Harris point out the significance of the fact that we captured him alive.
Another link roundup.
Lots of pix of jubilant Iraqis.
Iraqi blogger reactions.

Some people just can't stand good news, can they? Jarvis calls them the Coalition of the Pissy, I call them the But Crowd, as in Saddam’s been captured! But . . . Plenty of Buts in this BBC Talking Point forum.
Anyway - But Crowd? NZ Bear has a question for you.
"La la la la I can't hear you . . . "

Meanwhile, Wizbang is soliciting juicy conspiracy theories.

The Palestinians have lost their best friend. (Cue tiny violin . . . )

It will be interesting to hear what Saddam has to say about his relationship with Jacque Chirac.

A graphical representation of how many people Saddam killed.

Links to blogs with links to other blogs with links to news stories and other blogs . . . .

Let the Photoshopping begin.
Capitalism at work.
This Flash parody still works (punchline at the end!)

And of course Command Post is all over it.

Really really cool stuff. An Aeschylus play - thought to be forever lost in the burning of the great library of Alexandria - is recovered. From an Egyptian mummy. There are more things in heaven and earth than are dreamed of . . . .

The first true gigapixel digital photo. That's 100x the resolution of the human eye.

Mr. Picasso Head. You have to go to this site right now.

Search Voyeurs shows you what other people are searching for on a number of search engines.

Kesher Talk

Saturday, December 20, 2003

Friday, December 19, 2003

Thursday, December 18, 2003

Wednesday, December 17, 2003

Tuesday, December 16, 2003

Monday, December 15, 2003

Sunday, December 14, 2003

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