Needed: A chillier reception for Ahmadinejad in NY

Iran under Ahmadinejad is regarded by some as the most serious threat to Israel’s existence since it was established, and the most serious threat to the Jewish people as a whole since the Holocaust.

I’m therefore concerned at the somewhat muted response to the proposed visit by the Iranian tyrant to New York, where he will be allowed to address the UN General Assembly (although his lunatic request to visit Ground Zero has apparently been declined).

New York, with the largest concentration of Jews outside of Israel, remains the de facto capital of the Diaspora. So, while I can understand that “The World” will not unite to prevent this totally unseemly visit from taking place, I am less able to understand why organised Jewry in the US and elsewhere doesn’t seem to have a lot more to say about the issue. I’m pretty sure the message of the silent acquiescence has also not been lost on this modern-day Haman.

I would therefore like to suggest that the following would be a more appropriate response to the visit on the part of Israel and the organised US Jewish community (including the supposedly all-powerful Israel lobby):

• Israel should formally protest Ahmadinejad’s speaking engagement at the UN General Assembly, and call instead for Iran’s suspension from the UN for threatening the existence of another UN member state. I realise there’s not much chance of the protests being effective, but they do need to be placed on record, and that kind of thing needs to be seen as the nitty-gritty of the job of the Israeli Foreign Ministry.
• The US Jewish community and its friends and allies should call on all levels of government (local, county, state, Federal) to arrest Ahmadinejad should he enter any of the affected authorities. This could be on any one of a number of charges, including Holocaust denial, incitement to genocide or terrorism, based in any jurisdiction with the appropriate standing.
• Lastly, those with a more activist approach should stage demonstrations and protests in the vicinity of the UN, the Iranian embassy, Columbia University and other affected venues, to highlight the inappropriateness of the visit and the overall lack of response to this existential threat to Israel and the Jewish people.

Let’s not make the same mistake twice!

Ahmadinejad at the U.N. The Washington Times, America's Newspaper

Ahmadinejad In New York - September 20, 2007 - The New York Sun

A bungled Aliyah

Should we be surprised about the recent reports of involvement in neo-Nazi activities amongst a very small minority of youth from the FSU? Shocked, perhaps, but not surprised; it has become increasingly apparent that this neo-Nazi aberration reflects an even more widespread feeling of alienation amongst youth from the FSU.

Why shocked but not surprised? Immigration on the scale of that from the FSU in the 90s is bound to lead to perceptions of second class citizenship on the part of those who find integration into the new society difficult, for a variety of reasons. Where, as in this case, the Jewish “credentials” of almost a third of those immigrants is also questioned by segments of society, at least some of the results were predictable.

When the call to free Soviet Jewry began to be raised in the late 60s, they had already been living under Soviet tyranny for over 50 years; 70 years by the time large-scale immigration began. After a Biblical three score and ten years without any real form of Jewish exposure or infrastructure, did we really expect everyone to step off the aircraft at Ben Gurion airport clutching their mother’s Ketubah?

So, the question remains, what are we to do with those Jewish enough for Nuremberg, but not Jewish enough for Hechal Shlomo? What do we need to do in order to ensure that a situation such as this does not arise again?

Firstly, we need to recognise that the entire Zionist edifice must bear some blame for the situation, including the WZO/Jewish Agency, government agencies and the rabbinate (yes, the rabbinate is not part of the Zionist structures, but it should support them). Absorbing immigrants is (or should be) on of Israel’s core competencies, with no room for those who are not “singing from the same hymn-sheet”.

Regarding the rabbinate, we need a Zionist rabbinate, rather than a non- or even anti-Zionist one. This Zionist rabbinate needs to come up with an approach to conversion that does not require the candidate to adopt forms of Judaism that are not acceptable even to the majority of the Jewish public who were born Jewish.

If that’s not achievable, we need to widen the separation between Church and State, while at the same time adopting a more pluralistic approach to the various streams of Judaism, with total equality and recognition given to the major streams (Conservative, Reconstructionist and Reform), especially with regard to conversion.

We also need to call on all streams of Judaism to adopt the approach that anyone with one Jewish parent (whether mother or father) should be considered Jewish, i.e. accept the principle of Jewish patrilineal descent. We already know which of these streams are likely to heed the call.

Most of all, we need to reach out to those who haven’t already been totally alienated, who still see themselves as belonging in some way to Israel and the Jewish people. The immigrants and strangers in our midst cannot simply be allowed to sink or swim. Everyone, classmates, teachers, neighbours, fellow IDF members and bureaucrats could play a positive role here.

Much of the discussion on this issue has centred on proposals for changes to the Law of Return. This to me is something of a red herring. The problem is not with this magnificent piece of legislation (Israel’s very raison d'être) but with the dichotomy between our admiration for Soviet Jewry’s struggle to regain their Jewish heritage, and our failure to meet them at least half way.

This is something we need to get right, this time and next time (if there is a next time). Those who cry out for Aliyah as the life blood of Israel, but at the same time reject the Jewish identity of these and other marginal Jews need to remember that the situation is probably far worse in the remaining shrinking pools of potential immigrants, e.g. in the US, where the rate of intermarriage is said to be greater than 50%.

Neo-Nazi and related activities simply cannot be permitted within the borders of Israel, and the full force of the law needs to be directed against those implicated. We cannot, however, tar the entire wave of immigration with the same brush. Unless this crackdown on neo-Nazi activity is coupled with a much greater effort to integrate immigrants, especially the marginalised youth, the next wave of Aliyah will be an even greater disaster for the country and for the individuals who take part.

JNF Hechsher for carbon offsetting

Partly through the influence of celebrities, many people are now recognising the benefits – for both planet and soul – of living a carbon neutral lifestyle. In many cases, this carbon neutral status can only be achieved by a certain amount of carbon offsetting.

As many of the available carbon offsetting schemes involve tree planting, it was presumably only a matter of time before the Jewish National Fund (JNF) became involved in this sector; the JNF has been planting trees in Eretz Israel for more than a century.

They have chosen to make their entry by means of the JNF Go Neutral initiative, launched just prior to Rosh Hashanah. One of the cornerstones of the campaign is a fairly slick website, which includes items such as:

A carbon emission calculator, linked to a tool for donating to the JNF’s tree planting and other projects. According to the site, “In the interest of protecting the environment, you will receive an e-certificate only. No paper certificate will be mailed.”

Go Neutral goodies from cafepress

A newsletter signup (no indication of how often newsletters are sent)

A Go Neutral blog (of course)

Some useful FAQs, as well as pages summarising the JNF’s activities with a carbon neutral slant, why offset, history of the JNF, as well as tips for reducing your carbon footprint.

My only quibble is that the cost per tree is $10. This is lower than the usual donation of $18 per tree, but substantially more than with many schemes that involve planting mainly in 3rd world countries. But I guess if you’re here, you’re not looking at this purely from a carbon offsetting perspective! Hopefully, having your carbon offset investment managed by an experienced, reputable outfit like the JNF also counts for something!

I take the following paragraph to mean that the JNF is now finally abandoning its long-criticised policy of favouring large, monoculture pine forests (although I have seen it suggested that these pine monocultures are intended as nurse/pioneer crops in a longer-term diversification plan):

In addition, in the aftermath of the war with Hezbollah in 2006, JNF is implementing the principles of sustainable development and sustainable forest management as it seeks to re-green the north. The multi-faceted plan includes:

Working with natural systems and the enhancement of biological diversity as a central guideline

The Go Neutral website can be found here:

Jewish National Fund Go Neutral

Hat tip to the JTA for highlighting this initiative:

JTA.org -- The Jewish National Fund is launching an environmental awareness program that will propose offsetting carbon dioxide by planting trees in Israel.

The nation’s bullet proof vest

I have previously expressed my concern regarding the imminent disbanding of Israel’s public transportation security unit (fiercely opposed by the Transport Ministry, Israel Police and Egged). To get a better understanding of the functioning of this unit, and the impact its disbanding will have on the public (and on the members of the unit itself), please watch this Infolive.tv report (link below). The unit, known colloquially as the Magen (Shield) unit, is said to be of battalion strength, so the economic impact in terms of employment is hardly negligible (assume anything from 500 to 1,000 jobs, plus dependants).

The reason for disbanding the unit is said to be the decline in the level of suicide attacks and a lack of funding. I am concerned that the lives of Israeli citizens are (once again?) being used as cheap currency to accomplish some other noble (or ignoble) objective, in this case balancing a budget. Common sense would seem to indicate that the time to disband this unit is once a comprehensive state of peace exists between Israel and all its homicidal neighbours (especially those west of the Jordan), not before. (Yes, I know, I’ll eat my hat too.) Once the capabilities and capacities that exist within this unit are dissipated, it will take a huge and unnecessary effort to reinstate them.

At the very least, I would like to see this unit remain intact, even if some rationalisation does prove to be absolutely necessary. Better yet, the unit should become a permanent fixture of Israeli life, in the same way as sky marshals on El Al flights. I would actually like to see it become the nucleus of a nationwide transit/transportation police or border police unit. This unit would then be responsible for both security and crime prevention on Israel’s entire land-based transportation network, conducting both uniformed and plain-clothes/undercover operations.

Altneuland: Isn't this a little premature?

Israel News - Public Transport Security Units - The Nation's Bulletproof Vests- Exclusive Infolive.tv