Disney Heiress Withdraws Investment from Israel

Abigail Disney

TIME TO BOYCOTT DISNEY, Folks!

Abigail Disney, Walt’s great-niece and heiress, has just withdrawn her 12 million dollar investment in the Israeli Company Ahava because, she says, it is “stealing minerals” from an “Occupied West Bank.” 

Ms. Disney believes this violates both the 1970 Hague Convention and the Geneva Convention “by exploiting natural resources in occupied territories.”

Well—not exactly, and not so fast.

Disney is not actually withdrawing a penny for “complicated financial reasons.” She has decided to “donate the profits, as well as funds equal to the value of her shares in the Dead Sea minerals cosmetics firm Ahava, to groups working to end this illegal exploitation."

Serious Israeli (and non-Israeli) legal experts view the territories as “disputed” not “occupied”—but let’s not quibble.

Ms. Disney may not know it, but she has now become an honorary member and poster child for the anti-peace women’s “peace” group: Code Pink. This is a group which supports the government of Iran, the Taliban, the Muslim Brotherhood, the Fort Hood shooter, and many other such “peaceful” groups and individuals. 

One of their more high-profile targets is Ahava Cosmetics.

Perhaps Ms. Disney does not fully understand who her new allies really are.

For at least six-seven years, the Boycott, Sanctions, and Divestment campaign has targeted Israel’s beauty and cosmetic line, Ahava. 

Code Pink jumped right in and launched many creative and obnoxious demonstrations. 

In 2009, Code Pink members demonstrated in the Ahava store in the Tel Aviv Hilton. They smeared mud on their chests and holding signs that read: Stolen Beauty and “There is Nothing Beautiful About Occupation.”

In 2011, Code Pink was successful in getting The Bay, a large Canadian chain of stores, to drop Ahava Products. Their campaign is global and ongoing, and often successful. 

Their first victory consisted of having Oxfam’s Goodwill Ambassador, Kristin Davis, (Sex and the City), suspend her publicity work for them given her affiliation with Ahava; they have gotten London to investigate the “legality” of Ahava’s labeling, blockaded Ahava’s flagship store in London more than five times; and convinced the Dutch Foreign Ministry to launch an investigation of Ahava’s “business methods.”

The ironic thing is that West Bank companies tend to employ Arabs (both Israeli citizens and Palestinians). When such firms are boycotted, their employees suffer.

Soda Stream, another Israeli company situated in the West Bank, employs 950 Arabs (450 Arab Israeli citizens, 500 Palestinians).

 In 2014, after protests about not being allowed to bring in their own food after Ramadan-- home-bought food is prohibited for everyone-- sixty of the 950 Arabs were fired.

I mention this because Israeli companies actually employ Arabs (Israeli citizens and West Bank Palestinians); and Israelis start successful companies (Yes, they are the descendants of Jews who cleared the swamps and build a modern nation out of sand and rock).

We all know what the Gazan Palestinians did to the greenhouses that Israel left standing when it pulled out of Gaza completely. They destroyed them. They did not continue to use them to supply food to their people or to export food for commercial gain.

I hope Ms. Disney changes her mind. In fact, I hope all Hollywood changes its mind about who the real “Nazis,” fascists, totalitarians, barbarians, misogynists, and racists really are today.

And it is not Israel.

Letter to Kerry from a former White House Official

Lawrence J. Haas, a former senior White House official and award-winning journalist, is Senior Fellow for U.S. Foreign Policy at the American Foreign Policy Council

Dear Mr. Secretary,
I was struck by your recent observation about the Israel-Hamas conflict: “The world is watching tragic moment after tragic moment unfold and wondering when both sides are going to come to their senses.”

I can only imagine your dismay, in light of the hopes that President Obama and you had placed in Israeli-Palestinian peace, and all of your jet-setting, tongue-flapping and arm-twisting to make it happen. To encourage both sides to come to their “senses,” however, I suggest that not only do they have important roles to play. So, too, do you.

You might begin by recognizing, and speaking openly about, the profound differences between a pluralistic democratic state and a Jew-hating terrorist organization; between America’s most important regional ally and one of America’s fiercest enemies; between a country that shares our values and a genocidal terrorist entity that fully rejects them; and between a government that’s accountable to its people and a brutal dictatorship that isn’t.

You might then stop trying to negotiate cease-fires for the Israel-Hamas conflict with Qatar, which supports and funds Hamas (and with which Washington just inked a huge arms deal), and Turkey, which also supports Hamas and whose increasingly Islamist government routinely accuses Israel of genocide – while leaving Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Egypt out of the room. 

As you must know, Israel is our ally, the Palestinian Authority is the comparatively moderate Palestinian entity that we prefer over Hamas, and Egypt shares both a border with Gaza and security concerns with Israel about Hamas. And as you might suspect, Israeli officials resent your efforts to impose a cease-fire on them from the outside, as if they themselves don’t know what’s best for their own security.

You might, at the same time, stop crafting cease-fire proposals that give Hamas (remember: a Jew-hating terror group and sworn U.S. enemy) essentially everything it wants while addressing none of the legitimate security concerns of Israel (remember: our key regional ally and fellow democracy that shares our values).

Israel, which rejected the cease fire you cooked up with Qatar and Turkey, couldn’t help but notice that, as the Times of Israel reported, the deal called for easing restrictions on people and goods from Gaza to Israel; expanding fishing zones for Gaza; opening a crossing from Gaza to Egypt; and paying Gazan government employees. Israel could keep its troops in Gaza, but it couldn’t keep destroying Hamas’s threatening tunnels nor conduct any other “military or security” operations to defang Hamas.

Nor could Israel help but notice that the deal called for negotiations in Cairo between Israel and “the Palestinian factions” (presumably including the genocidal Hamas) to craft a longer-term solution that opened more Israel-Gaza border crossings, secured more movement of people and goods through them, improved the economic and social livelihood of Gazans and addressed all security issues.

You see, Mr. Secretary, Israel officials were miffed that, in your deal-making with Doha and Ankara, you addressed Hamas’ demands in detail while offering only vague references to “all security issues.” As you might imagine, they think it reflects your longstanding approach to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, as well as your recent mocking of Israeli efforts to deliver “pinpoint” attacks on Hamas.

In essence, Mr. Secretary, to set the right tone to address the Israel-Hamas conflict, you might stop equating Israeli humanity with Islamic barbarism – and, most maddening of all, tilting toward the latter.
Lawrence J. Haas, former communications director for Vice President Al Gore, is a senior fellow at the American Foreign Policy Council.
The above article was first published By U.S. News & World Report On July 29, 2014, Republished with the author’s permission

Chicage Bais Din Stands by their Psak, No Girl Should attend any of Meisels Seminaries!

From Emes Ve_Emunah Blog

It is rare for a Beis Din in America to reject the psak of a respected Beis Din in Beni Brak. But that is exactly what they have done. 

Remember that the Special Beis Din consisted of some of the most respected Rabbonim/Dayanim in all of Chicago. Their Hashkafos run from Centrist to Charedi. An Agudah Dayan, the Av Beis Din of the RCA, and the Rosh Kolllel of the Choshen Mishpat Kollel here in Chicago were the 3 Dayanim on this case. And they all rejected the conclusions of the Bnei Brak Beis Din in a published letter. 

Mr. Meisels

From Yerachmiel Lopin’s blog, here is what they said: 

We stand by our July 10 statement that we do not recommend prospective students attend these seminaries, and also note, based on evidence including testimony by victims and staff and admissions by Elimelech Meisels, our conclusion that certain senior staff members failed in their responsibilities toward students. 

This statement was not written by some hot-headed blogger with an anti Charedi agenda. It was written by some of the most respected Rabbonim in America.

The Bnei Brak Beis Din has said not to listen to the ‘naysayers’ since they do not know all of the facts. The problem is that the Chicago ‘naysayers’ not only know the facts, but spent an enormously greater amount of time studying them. I think we must all conclude that the Bnei Brak Beis Din has grievously erred here. Here is a point by point refutation of their ‘Psak’:

1) It is unclear as to whether these seminaries are safe even now after Meisels has sold them to one of his friends.

2) The staff may be incredible but despite their many legitimate successes with vast numbers of students, they nonetheless failed some of them miserably. They can no longer be trusted with the safety of their students.

3) Touro (and HTC) should not restore their relationship with these seminaries.

4) Since these schools are no longer recommended, other schools have a right, and perhaps a responsibility to recruit students from those schools. The claim by the Bnei Brak Beis Din that it is forbidden by Halacha to do so is based on their erroneous conclusions.

5) Slander and defamation is normally prohibited, unless there is a Toeles… a purpose that will protect people from harm. In the case of these seminaries, it is fair to say that the teachers who allowed this kind of thing to go on by looking the other way even though they suspected something are not the kind of teachers you want teaching your daughters anything!

6) Those that have intervened – specifically the Special Beis Din - should most definitely NOT be ignored. They not only have the facts, but they know them better than the Bnei Brak Beis Din does.

I realize that the Bnei Brak Beis Din wants to protect the livelihoods and reputations of those teachers. I’m sure those teachers are all fine people who otherwise deserve the accolades they have gotten in the past from students, parents, and now the Bnei Brak Beis Din. But the judgment of these teachers on this issue was at best foolish and at worst self centered.

By saying that these teachers failed in their responsibilities to their students - the Special Beis Din determined that these teachers did not do or say anything about their suspicions. Why? Who knows... but it is not a stretch to believe that they were quiet because they did not want to rock any boats.  Whistle blowers tend to get fired very quickly. Losing their jobs by reporting suspicions about their boss was certainly something to worry about. So they ignored the suspicious scenarios they saw.  Ignoring suspected sexual abuse because of the fear of losing one’s job does not deserve to be rewarded.

This is a very significant development. The 3 Chicago Rabbonim have decided to speak truth to power. They have stood on principle and sided against the conventional wisdom of sympathy for the institution and protecting the reputations of their staff.  Yes those teachers will be hurt. Sadly so will their families who are innocent of any wrong doing. But they will all survive. These 3 Rabbonim have instead sided with justice for the victims and the protection of our daughters. God bless them. 

Satmar excommunicates owner of Pomegranate Grocery, because he is a Satmar Tziyoinie

Excommunication Letter Against Pomegranate Grocery Owner

One of the owners of the Pomegranate Grocery in Flatbush is a Satmar Chasid. Two weeks ago, one of his employees, a Satmar Chasid, made an anti-Israel remark, and caused customers to stop shopping in the store. 

The owner did the right thing and fired the Satmar skunk, and put up a sign in the store that Pomegranate supports Israel and its war against Gaza.

Bad mistake!
The Romanian Satmar Mafia, put signs all over Brooklyn, that he is a traitor to the irrelevant crazy Satmar "Shita,"  that he, a Satmar Chassid "sold the entire Torah" by firing a self hating Jew, posting a pro Jewish sign in the store, and caused a "Chillul Hashem that will remain to the end of days, because he agreed with the Avoda Zara (State of Israel), and because his customers will now see that a Satmar Chasid can and will forgo the entire (irrelevant) Satmar Shita for a couple of dollars"

They put him in Cheirim until he apologizes to the long deceased Satmar Rebbe, Reb Yoel Teitelbaum z"l!

Question: What do we want from the entire world, that advocates the  boycott of Israel, when we have people that are Shomrei Torah Umitzvos that hate the State of Israel, and are willing to turn over the State to the blood thirsty terrorists? 
What do they want ? They want ISIS to take over? 
What's the plan? Satmar? 

Shalom!

France will shut down the JDL because the Arabs are beating up the Jews,?

Now you know why we need a Jewish Army!
They are shutting down an organization that tries to defend the French Jews, but they look away when Arabs beat up Jews??

Following a string of pro-Palestinian demonstrations that have turned violent , the French government is blaming a radical Jewish group known as the Jewish Defense League, or LDJ, for the violence and is actively pursuing legal avenues in an attempt to shut the group down.

AFP reports that sources say authorities believe it has been an active LDJ presence at pro-Palestinian rallies that has resulted in fights and arrests, including a July 13 clash outside a synagogue that resulted in a ban on any further pro-Palestinian rallies.

Interior Minister Bernard Cazeneuve said last week that that LDJ’s actions were “excessive” and “should be condemned.”

A source said the French extremely fine analysis of the law” in its attempt to disband the group.

LDJ has denied breaking any laws and said it is currently planning a pro-Israel rally.

LDJ was labeled a terrorist organization by the U.S.‘s FBI in 2001, and has largely been ostracized by France’s over-500,000 member Jewish community.government is “carrying out an  extremely fine analysis of the law” in its attempt to disband the group.

Arab Neighbors Back Israel In Gaza Conflict

Due to an increasing fear of political Islam in the region, many of Israel’s Arab neighbors are aligning themselves with the Jewish state this time around in its efforts to eradicate Hamas’ presence in Gaza.

US Secretary of State John Kerry (2-R) and Arab League Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi (2-L) with their respective delegations meet for talks in Cairo, Egypt, 22 July 2014

The NY Times (http://nyti.ms/1qpLg91) reports that as part of a newly formed coalition with Egypt, leaders from Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates have not officially come out in supports of Israel, but through their continued backing of proposed Egyptian ceasefires—-which to date have leaned heavily towards meeting only the demands of Israel—-they have sent a de facto message of support.

The unofficial gag-order currently in place among Arab nations with regard to the continued blood-shed of fellow Arabs in Gaza has left Middle East experts in awe.

Former U. S. presidential Middle East negotiator Aaron David Miller said, “The Arab states’ loathing and fear of political Islam is so strong that it outweighs their allergy to Benjamin Netanyahu. I have never seen a situation like it, where you have so many Arab states acquiescing in the death and destruction in Gaza and the pummeling of Hamas. The silence is deafening.”

Agudah is busy with the Dead, while the IDF is busy protecting the living!

This is too bizarre for words!
Jews throughout Israel are cowering in their shelters, and instead of making a pro-Israel rally in lower Manhattan, they are busy with cemeteries.

We know that Agudah can muster tremendous crowds; witness the disgraceful "Yom Tefillah" that they organized in Lower Manhattan just a few months ago. 

Where are they now?  Why is it ok now to say thillim secretly in their prospective shuls? Why arn't they organizing the masses to show the world that we are 100% behind our brothers and sisters in the land that G-D gave us????

The United States Senate has passed, by unanimous consent, legislation that seeks to protect cemeteries abroad from vandalism and desecration.  Agudath Israel of America is applauding passage of the bill, which was introduced by Senator Ben Cardin (D-MD) and Senator James Risch (R-ID).  The measure has already been approved by the House of Representatives, where it was sponsored by Representative Grace Meng (D-NY), and is now headed to the President’s desk for signature.

Obama finally admits that he is a Muslim? Video

See for yourself! In Obama's own words!

Britain's largest supermarket chain Tesco, founded by Jews, pulls West Bank products from shelves,

Britain's largest supermarket chain, founded by Jews, announced that it will no longer sell products from the West Bank.

Tesco was founded in 1919 by Jack Cohen.

Tesco emphasized that the decision was not politically motivated and not related to the ongoing conflict in Gaza.

“It was made as part of a regular review process,” the company said.

As part of the boycott, Tesco asked two health and beauty products companies to provide a list of all their products and ingredients imported from Israel and the Palestinian territories.

“We have received some questions from customers about the products we sell, which are obtained from Israel or the West Bank,” the Tesco spokesperson said.

“To make sure that we answered their questions with the most accurate and updated information, we contacted suppliers to corroborate our own data, particularly for branded products,” the spokesperson also said

Kiryas Yoel "Shul Maintenance Worker" has Sexual Relationship with 15 year old boy

But it's ok, because he is not a "Tzionie" and did "Chesed" with the 15 year old boy!