Kofi Annan

As I sit here at my desk listening to his latest discourse on the Middle East, I am sure the founders of the UN are rolling in their graves. Y'know, the United Nations was borne out of the Second World War, based on the defunct League of Nations. Sidenote--Who was responsible for the League of Nations disbandment? Canada. Yup. We invoked Article 9 of the charter...read up on it, quite interesting. But I digress. Way back when, Churchill (UK PM) and Roosevelt set up the UN as a counterbalance to the Nazis and the axis of evil. How did one become a member? Only by declaring war against an axis power. Then, after the war, one needed to be a democracy to join the Gentleman's Club. Now? Any dictator and theocrat can pay the membership fee and hijack the Human Righrs Council to shit on Israel. I mean, really. Let's just change the name to the "Body Responsible for the Continued Mistreatment of, and Distribution of Propaganda against, any Jewish presence in the Middle East"....At least this way we wouldn't be confused as to the organization's goals and values are.

I want to share something with you all. This was emailed to me by my dad, so I will paste it below for your reading pleasure. It appeared recently in a Spanish newspaper, and this is a translation....


" ALL EUROPEAN LIFE DIED IN AUSCHWITZ"
By Sebastian Vilar Rodrigez(*)

I walked down the street in Barcelona, and suddenly discovered a terrible truth - Europe died in Auschwitz. We killed six million Jews and replaced them with 20 million Muslims. In Auschwitz we burned a culture, thought, creativity, talent. We destroyed the chosen people, truly chosen, because they produced great and wonderful people who changed the world.The contribution of this people is felt in all areas of life: science, art, international trade, and above all, as the conscience of the world. These are the people we burned. And under the pretense of tolerance, and because we wanted to prove to ourselves that we were cured of the disease of racism, we opened our gates to 20 million Muslims, who brought us stupidity and ignorance, religious extremism and lack of tolerance, crime and poverty due to an unwillingness to work and support their families with pride.They have turned our beautiful Spanish cities into the third world, drowning in filth and crime. Shut up in the apartments they receive free from the government, they plan the murder and destruction of their naive hosts. And thus, in our misery, we have exchanged culture for fanatical hatred, creative skill for destructive skill, intelligence for backwardness and superstition. We have exchanged the pursuit of peace of the Jews of Europe and their talent for hoping for a better future for their children, their determined clinging to life because life is holy, for those who pursue death, for people consumed by the desire for death for themselves and others, for our children and theirs.What a terrible mistake was made by miserable Europe.***********************************


As I've said before, I will ask again...
What side are YOU on?

"On the brink of war..."

How silly is that...."on the brink of war"? That's CNN's tagline as they cover this increase in violence in Israel and the Middle East. On the brink? Where have these people been since '48? This is the same war....the Terror War.

As such, the IDF continues to demonstrate efficiency, efficacity, professionalism and courage in the face of our enemies. Their steadfast dedication to the Jewish State is to be commended; their sacrifice is the ultimate sacrifice one can make for one's values. Their continued kiddush Hashem is the epitomy of what it means to sanctify and honour G-d's almighty name. I hope that you, dear reader, will join me in wishing them speed and success, health and prosperity now and all time.

PM Olmert addressed the knesset today. His eloquence and strength truly transcended the words he used to describe the unity the Israeli people have shown; their determination to withstand terror; and their drive towards a true and lasting peace in the region. Olmert, and the entire knesset with him, speak for the hearts and minds of Israelis and Jews the world over. We will not allow the terrorists to win. We will not allow our beauiful land- land which we've worked and toiled for over a century- to be taken by these animals who only wish to destroy everything we have built. We will not allow the light of hope to be extinguished. We will not allow the terrorists who have taken our brethren to escape unscathed. The true might of the IDF and the grandeur of our little country at the heart of the world will, again, rise above the disdain and hate perpetrated against us by those who wish our destruction.

Israel and her supporters will continue to dictate the moral terms of the region. We will continue to build our state in the image of G-d, and our actions will represent that image. I am completely faithful to the path that Hashem has put us on...it is this path that will lead us to ultimate salvation. It is this path that will allow Jews to live free from fear of anti-Semitism; and will allow Israel to prosper.

The sooner the terrorists realize this, the sooner we can all move forward. They can try to push us to the sea all they want, they will learn that we do not swim. This land is ours, and we are here to stay.

Back to action....

Sorry friends, it's been a while....and it seems reality has caught up with us.

Reflecting on my short 6 week visit to Israel has opened my eyes to many things. I learnt a lot about myself this summer, and I look forward to continuing on this journey towards spiritual enlightenment.

Life was fulfilling in Israel. There was purpose. There was meaning. There was an actual, tangeable connection to G-d....very tough to explain. But I felt it. I lived it. Now, the challenge (nisayon) is to strive for that continued kind of relationship with the Almighty. Will it be difficult? Of course. Impossible? No way....this is the meaning of my existence and, as such, is logically plausible, no matter how difficult.

Sports.....Italy beat France (good...we hate the French), the Habs re-tooled (go Samsonov), and the Apocalypse is around the corner.....(I'm only half kidding).

Among the many new things I learnt at Aish was the idea of Messianic and pre-Messianic times. The pre-Messianic times will bring about that proverbial line in the sand....the CHOICE to choose between right and wrong; good and evil. The ongoing crisis in Israel dictates that such a time has, indeed, come. We must choose sides...For those who read what I write often, (that's you, Ma), then you know I could say "I told you so".....This has been my opinion for years....we have embarked on a downward spiral that is WAR and the fruits to bare will be pain, fear and terror. But we make War with enemies, not friends....

I am proud of the Canadian government for once again standing side by side with Israel and her right to protect her citizens. I knew things would improve on the homefront with our foreign policy, but the Conservatives have done such an exemplary job. I'm quite proud.

It's not enough. We have 3 kidnapped soldiers. We have thousands of residents sleeping in bomb shelters. We have millions who are sick and tired of this. Sick and tired of worrying whether their children will return home form school safely.

We left Lebanon. Gave Gaza away...for nothing. What's left? What else do our enemies want? What else are we willing to give away?

The most basic question one can ask regarding the ongoing Terror War; the one question who's answer dictates what side of the divide you stand....Do our enemies really and truly want to make a lasting peace with us? If you answer yes, then the sacrifices will continue. We will continue to give away land, economy, etc...on the hope, nay, the mere whisper of 'peace'. But if you answer no, then we must ask, what are our intentions? If peace is a by-product of Western media and unattainable, how do we defeat our enemies? What about the international community? Should we even care about the UN rebukes? The Security Council resolutions? Either we're all-in, right here, right now, or we fold. That's how grave the situation is that we face today. Either we're in it to win it, or we cut our losses.

Olmert et al. have continued to disappoint me. They have no idea what they're doing. We need leaders who are resolute. Who assess the situation, provide a solution, and work towards that solution with their blinders on. What I have seen so far would make Paul MArtin, aka Mr. Dithers, proud.

Finally, it is the people who suffer from their governments inability to pursue either peace or terrorists with any efficiency at all. The time has come for our leaders to answer to their decisions.

Have a great Shabbos, everyone, and the new week will bring more talk about Israel's political future, the kidnapped soldiers, and the last days of Hizbullah as we know it. May G-d continue to bless the Jewish people, the IDF and all our brothers and sisters who share in our countries future. Amen.