Biden must let Bibi fight his way: Goodwin

 

These are the faces of some of the top Hamas and Islamic Jihad leaders and terrorists.

They were responsible for the rocket attacks against Israel in the last 72 hours.

They will never plan another terror attack again. pic.twitter.com/in1w63wOpF

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) May 13, 2021

by Michael Goodwin

For many Americans, the violent clash between Israel and Hamas sparks an understandable sense of having seen it all before. While it’s true there is a long, bloody history between the combatants, the current fighting is unique in ways that make the endgame especially crucial for the Jewish state and the entire region. 

The most obvious change is that Hamas increased its rocket capacity, both in numbers and range. In previous battles, the relative handful of explosives launched from Gaza were a threat only to Israelis near the border. 

This time, more than 2,000 rockets and mortars have been fired, and Israeli officials are surprised at how far some can travel. While the explosives are unguided and many are destroyed by Iron Dome batteries, the sheer number has at times overwhelmed the defense system, making all of Israel more vulnerable. 

Air raid sirens are sending residents to defense shelters all over the country and some civilians have been killed, including a child. 

The rockets are smuggled from Iran or built in Gaza using Iranian supplies, making the weapons a proxy for Iran’s malign reach. Hezbollah, the Iranian cat’s-paw controlling Lebanon, sits on Israel’s northern border, and three rockets fired from there Friday caused concern that a second front might develop. 

There also are outbreaks of violence in the West Bank and Arab villages in Israel, some involving Jewish and Muslim civilians ­attacking each other. 

Still, the main event is the Iranian connection and the willingness of Hamas to fire indiscriminately on civilian areas, including Tel Aviv and Jerusalem. That combination justifies Israel’s ferocious response and its effort to wipe out the terrorist group’s leadership. 

A Wednesday tweet from the Israel Defense Forces showed the faces of 14 men it said were “neutralized.” 

“They were responsible for the rocket attacks against Israel in the last 72 hours,” the tweet read. “They will never plan another terror attack again.” 

The decapitation strikes illustrate Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s plan to inflict massive and lasting damage on Hamas. To head off any push for quick restraint, which would give Hamas a public relations victory and spare its leaders, Israeli officials told the Biden adminis­tration to buzz off. 

They want the freedom to act because they believe it is crucial that Hamas not only lose the war it started, but for its defeat to be widely seen and understood. Otherwise, the terrorists will gain stature and an incentive to do it again. 

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Elise Stefanik elected to replace Liz Cheney as House GOP Conference chair

 

Stefanik tells House Republicans the conference has a ‘unifying’ goal: winning back the majority in 2022

The House Republican Conference on Friday morning voted to elect Rep. Elise Stefanik as its chairwoman, sealing the New York lawmaker’s ascent two days after the group ousted Rep. Liz Cheney amid strong tension over the party’s future.

Stefanik said she’s “truly honored and humbled” to earn the support of her Republican colleagues, and vowed to “save our country” from the “radical Democrat Socialist agenda,” Fox News is told.

“I know we are all here to serve the people, the voters who place their trust and faith in us. You have put yours in me to serve this Conference and I will never lose sight of that. I will always work my very hardest to earn your trust every day,” Stefanik went on to say. 

She added: “This will not be an easy job, but I know we are stronger when united as a team.”

Stefanik’s appointment as House Republican Conference chair came just days after House Republicans voted to remove Cheney, R-Wyo., from leadership.

Cheney had remained steadfast in her opposition to former President Donald Trump and his “dangerous lies” about the 2020 election being stolen from him — putting her at odds with other House Republicans who wanted to move on from the Jan. 6 riot and unite the party to win in the 2022 midterms. Cheney was removed by a voice vote.

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STOP THE SHIDDUCH PICTURES

The following from R' Yisrael Reisman to the Flatbush Jewish Journal Letters to the Editor

Dear Shadchanim,

I was excited to see the "nix the pics" ad in the FJJ, last week. THANK YOU for standing up for the honor of Bnos Yisroel. There is not one Mechanech, Rebbe or Rosh Yeshiva that agrees to the practice of requesting pictures of Bnos Yisroel before a date. It is detrimental to the young men, who are entering a relationship with warped priorities. In addition, there is a great Kitrug upon those who are dealing in such a manner, due to the lack of modesty, and the degradation of the honor of Bnos Yisroel.

This practice is wrong, and it is ineffective. I have been dealing with issues of Shalom Bayis for over thirty years. I have had the privilege of having shimush in these topics from my great Rebbi, Rav Avraham Pam zt"l. We have not seen marriages destroyed because there was a lack of external beauty. On the other hand, we have heard from many husbands, that the physical beauty of their wives, blinded their eyes and prevented them from making more sensible considerations in their choice of a marriage partner. Many of these marriages were not happy ones, and did not last. An overemphasis on externals blinds the eyes of the wise.

My advice is that you strengthen yourselves and have the courage to maintain the policy of dealing exclusively in Shidduchim without introductory photos, in the spirit of “Derech Yisroel Saba.”

A Chassid once quipped “It shall not be done in our community to place the ‘tzirah’ (photo) before the ‘bechirah’ (date).”

With a prayer for our success in correcting this breach of conduct,

Rabbi Yisroel Reisman

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"A girl should study to be a housewife" Rabbi Avigdor Miller

 

Q: Should a girl who is studying to be a lawyer practice in crimi- nal court and get the experience she needs by defending criminals?

A: I want to start this question a little earlier. Should a girl study to be a lawyer altogether? 

No! A girl should study to be a housewife! It’s a tragedy when girls go for a career.

Now, I know that the girl who asked the question is right here, but listen to me. People have to know what’s good for their future, what’s good for their happiness. If a woman is independent and she has her own career, she’s a misfit in her home.

A woman has to be only a house- wife and nothing more. It’s of the utmost importance to realize that a

man has to make a living, but a woman has to create a future generation. And in case she cannot, she has to build a home anyhow. And building a home is a full time job. It’s a master piece when the wise woman learns how to create a true Jewish home. And it needs all of her talents.

And therefore, isn’t it a waste? 

You can get a bum, to be a criminal lawyer – which they are. Nobody should be a criminal lawyer! But to take a good Jewish girl and waste her neshama and waste her talents in standing in a gentile court and speaking about criminals, it’s a pity. It’s taking diamonds and using them instead of stones.

TAPE # 536 (January 1985)

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Mishpacha Magazine Keeps Promoting Lies About the Tragedy in Meron

 

by RationalistJudaism Blog 

Now is a time to focus on defending Israel. But amidst all the rockets and riots and rage against Israel for defending its citizens, thousands of families will be sitting down this Shabbos to read Mishpacha magazine, which features articles about the Meron tragedy. There is a very significant lead article from the publisher of Mishpacha magazine, Eli Paley. It's an article which along with some important truths, also contains lots of falsehoods and slander, which will infuriate many people. However, if you understand the context in which it is written, then you can be sympathetic to what he is trying to do, even while bemoaning the state of a society in which he has to do it in such a way.

Paley begins by saying that although silence is a fitting response to tragedy, it must effect a change of some kind, noting that Chazal enacted various rulings in response to deaths caused by overcrowding. But he then takes a very strange position:

But conclusions of this kind are only reached by the sages of the generation, and are not the job of a Torah-guided magazine, whose role is instead to serve as a platform for bringing the words of gedolei Torah to the public. When tragedy strikes, these gedolim guide us to understand: What does Hashem want from us? How are we supposed to react to such events, and what are we obligated — as individuals and as a tzibbur — to fix as a result of the fire that Hashem ignited?

The reason why I describe this position as very strange is that the Gedolei Torah have made their response clear, and it's a call for irrelevant teshuvah in terms of learning more Torah, increasing tzniyus, and respecting other Jews (unless they are rationalists). Paley, on the other hand, proceeds to effectively say that this response is completely inadequate:

Still, the magazine has another task: to bring the relevant information from the scene to the awareness of the public and the policymakers, to point out areas where improvement may be necessary, and to discuss possible alternatives to the existing protocols... In situations such as these, we do not have the right to remain silent, even though we would prefer to. Not when it comes to human lives. Not when it comes to a practice that repeats itself time and again, in various forms... As believing Jews, we are obligated to conduct a cheshbon hanefesh, an internal reckoning, after a tragedy. But we can and should also analyze the human errors that made it possible for such a catastrophe to happen. 

This is correct (though it would be even more correct to say that analyzing the human causes of a man-made disaster is the cheshbon hanefesh, not supplementary to it). The Gedolim's response is a thorough abdication of responsibility, and it's great to see that Paley does not go along with it. And Paley proceeds to nail that which made it possible for such a catastrophe to happen:  

And while it’s too early to draw firm conclusions, from the knowledge we do have at this point it seems that there is one central, underlying issue: the question of the State of Israel’s relationship with the chareidi sector.... There is no government entity that assumes responsibility to assure the necessary infrastructure and conditions that would facilitate safe access to Kever Rashbi... Did the state turn a blind eye to the fact that the event was organized and run by a hodgepodge of hekdesh entities and a few volunteer organizations that have no ties to governmental authorities? How is it possible that no one drafted a comprehensive master plan to make sure such a mass event — an event that grows from year to year — is managed properly? ...No one thoroughly evaluated the infrastructure, the size and character of the event, or the possible alternatives that could have been put in place to make sure it was held safely... It’s hard to believe that the state would exhibit such a lackadaisical approach to any similar event.

Paley has nailed it. This is exactly correct. 

Unfortunately, then he goes totally wrong. Incredibly, Paley proceeds to blame the State of Israel for this! 

...The state chose to let things ride... it’s hard to ignore the feeling that as far as the decision makers are concerned, this event was not “their” responsibility... Does the state consider the chareidi sector equal to the others? When chareidim hold a mass event, does the state neglect basic safety standards?

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Biden Sends Known Vicious Antisemite Hady Amr to Israel to broker calm between Israel and Hamas.

 

The article below doesn't address the fact that Hady Amr is a long time Israel hater who blamed the US for 9/11 and wrote that he was "inspired" by the Palestinian intifada in which terrorists murdered 1,000 Jews ... He is Biden's Deputy Assistant Sec of State..

Let that sink in!

With rockets flying and violence escalating in the Gaza Strip, the Biden administration announced Wednesday that it dispatched Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Hady Amr to the region, in an effort to broker calm between Israel and the terrorist group Hamas. The likelihood of a successful mission is low. But that’s not Amr’s fault; it’s President Joe Biden’s. His Middle East foreign policy is simply out of sync with this mission.

In past conflicts, senior American officials often found ways to steer both sides to a ceasefire, even when Israel wasn’t quite satisfied with the results on the battlefield. But Jerusalem always acquiesced to Washington in the end, out of deference to the close ties between the two nations.

Given America’s foreign policy these days, it’s not clear how that will fly. Israeli officials are not exactly eager to hear America’s view of Iranian-backed terrorists like Hamas. Tensions are at a zenith, thanks to the Biden administration’s stubborn insistence that now is the time to re-enter the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action — the flawed 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.

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The Associated Press Had Offices in Hamas Building .. Israel Destroyed It

This story buried somewhere in the media is very disturbing.. How is it that The Associated Press had offices in the same building as Hamas? The Associated Press has the sheer gall to say that "This is an incredibly disturbing development,”

It sure is a disturbing development!

The CEO of The Associated Press Gary Pruitt said with a straight face that he was "shocked and horrified" by the attack because the Israeli Government "had long known that this building was the office of journalists" 

So Mr. Pruitt, how is it that you have an office in same building that houses murderers that plan attack on Israeli families? 

 An Israeli airstrike destroyed a high-rise building that housed several media outlets in the Gaza Strip, including The Associated Press and Al Jazeera.

The airstrike Saturday came roughly an hour after the Israeli military ordered people to evacuate the building, the AP reported. Al Jazeera aired the bombing live.

In addition to the media centers, the building had a number of offices and apartments.

AP President and CEO Gary Pruitt said he was “shocked and horrified” by the attack and was seeking information from the Israeli government and the State Department to learn why the building, long known to Israel as the office of journalists, was targeted. “This is an incredibly disturbing development,” Pruitt said in a statement. “We narrowly avoided a terrible loss of life. A dozen AP journalists and freelancers were inside the building and thankfully we were able to evacuate them in time.”

The world will know less about what is happening in Gaza because of what happened today.

The Israel Defense Forces said the high-rise housed “military assets” used by the military intelligence wing of the Strip’s Hamas rulers. The IDF accused Hamas of “hiding behind” the offices of the press outlets in the Al Jalaa tower and “using them as human shields,” The Times of Israel reported.

“The Hamas terror group intentionally locates its military assets in the hearts of civil populations in the Gaza Strip,” the IDF said in a statement.

After the team evacuated, AP journalist Najib Jobain and others set up a new live position from a nearby rooftop and captured the attack as it happened, AP Managing Editor Brian Carovillano tweeted. The video they shot showed the building collapsing into rubble.

The Biden administration criticized the airstrike. ” We have communicated directly to the Israelis that ensuring the safety and security of journalists and independent media is a paramount responsibility,” Press Secretary Jen Psaki tweeted.

The airstrike came amid continued fighting between Israel and the Hamas militants in Gaza.

Thirteen people were killed in Israeli air strikes in Gaza Strip on Saturday, according to Palestinian health officials, raising the territory’s death toll to 139. Among the victims, 10 were from the same family, including eight children. Their house was hit by an Israeli air strike at a refugee camp west of Gaza City, Palestinian officials told the BBC.

Hamas fired about 200 rockets at Israel overnight in response, hitting homes in three southern cities. A man in his 50s died during a rocket attack in the Tel Aviv suburb of Ramat Gan. He’s the ninth person to be killed in Israel since fighting began.

Hamas threatened to target central Israel after the tower was destroyed.

“After the bombing of the civilian tower in Gaza, residents of Tel Aviv and the center must be on standby,” said Abu Obeida, the spokesman of Hamas’ military wing.

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If you are a Jewish American or a regular Democrat, and voted Biden, read this

We, the grass roots, extremist right-wing, Trump-loving Jews, would like to extend our warmest gratitude in electing one Joe Biden. Especially at this time.

You were so right all along, our "Nazi" (in your words) President Trump (not your President, of course) kept much too much peace in the world. You were so right to seek Twitter peace above all other kinds; peace in Israel is for the birds.

Today, after 1800 rocket bombardments over the tiny Jewish State, we are comforted by the thought that you no longer feel distraught by Trump's daily tweets and unsavory TV appearances.

Likewise, we are comforted in knowing that your brand of Tikkun Olam works so well for you, Israel be dammed.

Our racist, homophobic, and misogynist Russian Spy President (your words again) did irreparable harm. You called it from the start. Let’s reminisce, shall we?

We recall your heeded warnings about an outright bloody war with the Muslim world when President Trump reaffirmed Jerusalem as the Capital of Israel and moved his embassy there. How right you were...or were you?

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Zera Shimshon Parshas Bamidbar

 

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450 bombs in 35 minutes: This is how the IDF tricked Hamas

 

Just after midnight on Friday morning, Israel announced that "air and ground forces from the IDF are now attacking in Gaza. More details to follow."

The military columnists in Israel understood that this meant the armored corps and artillery deployed near Gaza will attack, but the unclear notice led foreign reporters to report the beginning of a ground operation in Gaza.

Now it has been clarified that the unclear announcement was a planned trick by the IDF to eliminate a large number of Hamas terrorists within a short time.

Infantry, artillery, and tanks were moved towards the IDF border, and Hamas believed that Israel was about to begin a ground invasion. As a result, Hamas sent its fighters into its underground tunnel system beneath Gaza City.

On Thursday night, the IDF brought in 160 aircraft and dropped 450 bombs containing over 80 tons of explosives, hitting 150 terror targets in 35 minutes. Hamas' underground city was hit with enormous force, and the IDF collapsed the terror tunnel system, on the heads of the terrorists hiding in the tunnels.

During the attack, many kilometres of terror tunnels were destroyed. As of now, neither Israel nor Hamas is clear on the exact scope of the damage, but according to estimates, a large number of terrorists were buried in the sands beneath Gaza.

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