Worst Game Ever

Now that I feel like a true Israeli, I have sworn off taking taxis in favour of city buses. Why you may ask? Good question......the almighty dollar. Why should I pay 20, 30 or even 40 shmekels for a 10 minute cab ride when I can ride the bus for a mere 5.5 shmekels? Unfortunately, due to this change in transportation credo, I have begun to play a horrible game that I assume every Israeli plays......spot the terrorist.

First off, let me elaborate a little further on the safety measures the Israeli police provide for those riding the bus. At each and every stop, there is an armed officer that acts as a "bouncer" for anyone wanting to take the bus. He approaches everyone (myself included), wishing them a "yom tov" (nice day) in order to hear their reply (I answer in English---better to be a tourist at this point), he also stands by each bus as people board, he checks the various garbage receptacles looking for suspicious packages.....and that's just what I noticed, who knows what else he does.

So back to the game. As I stand at the bus stop, waiting for the 38 to take me from town to the Old City, my mind does not wander. I'm not thinking about the upcoming Stanley Cup finals, not about the constant barrage of Qassams landing in Sderot, or even who will win the Labor primaries this week and most probably replace Peretz as Defence Minister. I "people watch", looking for someone wearing a heavy jacket, carrying a bag suspiciously or anything out of the ordinary (which is tough, as everything is pretty much out of the ordinary). But then I start to wonder, what, if anything I would do if my spidey senses kicked in and I felt I should act. Would I tell someone in my (what would be) adrenaline filled broken Hebrew? Would I act myself and approach said suspect? Who knows.....All I do know is that this is a game I will be playing for the foreseeable future, and what bothers me the most is that I'm OK with that. In some sick and twisted way, it makes me feel more Israeli. I feel this will somehow bleed into my subconscious, so that in the coming weeks and months I will be able to contemplate the Sens chances against the Ducks, Barak or Ayalon as the new Labor leader and what the government will do in the South, all the while still playing the worst game ever.

Landed....

Wow, what a gorgeous day....hot, humid and sticky.....man, I missed this place.

It's great to be back in Jeru, I honestly feel like I never left! The group has really come together in the short time we've been here and I can already see the unbelievable potential these kids, errr, participants have (I write kids, but they really aren't).

La Vitta Est Bella....life is good. How can anyone want to leave this majestic place, this gift from G-d? I know I can't.....

Avi's Ultimate Adventure

And today, that adventure begins.

I feel as if my entire existence has been preparation for what's to come. Hebrew Academy, Hasbara, Hillel......I guess this trip to Israel is the culmination of years of mental and emotional growth to allow me the courage to go to Israel with the confidence that I now have on my own ability to lead a good Jewish life in the only Jewish state in the world.

What's this feeling I have? Am I nervous? excited? Some combination of both? I think it's the knowledge that a change is coming......We get so bogged down in our own personal routines, that I think when change does come, it's only natural to question it. We are creatures of habit and comfort, so when that comfort gets traded in for meaning, we become a bit apprehentious.....and maybe that's what I'm feeling now.

I am really excited for the Hasbara trip....great group of kids and I get to work with some of my fave people on the planet. After that.....your guess is as good as mine.

Stay tuned for more updates on this, my ultimate adventure!!!!

Where are we going?

"Going Green" seems to be the issue-du-jour across North America, spearheaded by those people we rely on to tell us what to care about.......celebrities in Hollywood.

I mean, really, did I fall asleep last month and just wake up? Last time I checked, children are dying of hunger, people are living on the streets in every city in the world, there are more than 30 armed conflicts occuring worldwide, a litre of gas is more expensive than a cup of coffee, people wait months for an X-ray, students till pay too much for an education, etc......

And yet whats the issue? Environmentalism. Don't get me wrong, I love Mother Earth and I feel her pain. But the pain of my neighbour is more important to me.

And you want to know the worst thing about this neo-Green movement? The public is eating it up!!! People who don't recycle and people who don't even know what global warming is are now lining up to throw the Conservatives out of power because David Suzuki says so!?!? Ridiculous.

Winston Churchill said it best......The best argument against democracy is spending 5 minutes talking to the average voter.

The fact of the matter is that people are either stupid, naive or ignorant to a degree. And the celebrities pushing the Green agenda are banking on this, as are our Canadian politicians. When did the environment become the primary issue, the reason to elect an official?

Our present age of technology, globalism, the internet......this will be our collective undoing. There are so many important things to discuss, so many more important measures that our politicians need to take....and yet, our ignorance supercedes what's best for us, and, as we've made our bed, we will have to sleep in it.

And people wonder why the world laughs at us.....