Will Israel join Red Cross?

Member countries of the international Red Cross movement Tuesday asked Switzerland to organize a diplomatic conference by year-end to revive an effort to give Israel full membership status that it has been denied for nearly six decades.

“Switzerland in its role as a depositary state of the Geneva Conventions plans to organize a diplomatic conference charged with adopting a protocol to establish an additional emblem to the existing red cross and red crescent emblems,” the Swiss government said.

U.S. Ambassador in Geneva Kevin Moley said the American delegation was pleased with the talks’ outcome.

Democratic Primaries – Now

Taking place now are the Primaries for the Democratic Nominee which will run against Mayor Bloomberg.

Here is a letter most of the shchunah received, as to who to vote for.

If you are interested in voting and don’t know where to go or what you need to do, the city set up 311 for all of those questions. So don’t hesitate to call.

Katrina’s ‘message’ to Jews

Even as much of New Orleans was still submerged, dead bodies floating on the putrid city-turned-lake, live ones waving from rooftops, the accusations flew fast and furious.

The loss of life and property during the Gulf Coast destruction was the fault of President Bush Louisiana officials city planners those who established a city where disaster was inevitable those who chose to live there racism the Department of Homeland Security FEMA. Choose your villain, or combination of rogues, and point fingers accordingly.

As it happens there is a Jewish concept, too, of finger-pointing at times of catastrophe. But it is of a decidedly different sort. Jewish tradition counsels Jews to point their fingers at themselves.

Crown Heights Hatzalah Gets a New Ambulance

Crown Heights Hatzalah currently has 3 ambulances, 2 that are always ready In front of 770, and another that is parked in the Hatzalah garage.

And now Hatzalah is getting a fourth ambulance, donated by Meir Eichler, Feitel Levin and Shmuel Stern and will be in memory of Meir’s Mother and Feitels Mother in Law Helen [Elka] Eichler.

Hatzalah will be receiving this ambulance in time for Rosh Hashana.

PA starts demolishing synagogues in Gaza

Palestinian security forces have started demolishing the Jewish synagogues left in the Gaza Strip after Israel completed its last withdrawal from the coastal area, security sources said Monday.

Witnesses said as bulldozers started demolishing the synagogue in the Nitsarim settlement in the eastern Gaza city, hundreds of Palestinians climbed to the roof of the synagogue and raised the Palestinian flags, calling “God is great.”

After that, they set fire to the synagogue, the witnesses added.

Islamic law could threaten Jewish courts

A proposal to let Ontario residents use Islamic law for settling family disputes has drawn protests in Canada and at some of its diplomatic sites in Europe, and has thrown into question the official sanctioning of Jewish religious courts in the Canadia province.

The demonstrations were peaceful and generally small, ranging from a couple dozen to a few hundred peope, but organizers said they reflected growing concern over the province’s stance on Islamic law, or sharia.

Ontario’s provincial government has been reviewing a report recommending that sharia be allowed to settle Muslim family disputes such as divorce, and said it will soon make a decision.

Anti-Sharon Rally Featuring Jailed Teenage Girl
Set For Thursday Opposite UN

There will be a large anti-Sharon rally in the large plaza near the United Nations when Prime Minister Ariel Sharon visits there Thursday.

Chaya Belogorodsky one of the teenage girls held in prison for months for her anti-expulsion activism, and her father, Moshe, will be principal speakers at the demonstration. Chaya and her father travelled to America to raise awareness about civil rights abuses occurring in Israel and to raise funds for Honenu, the organization providing legal assistance for political prisoners.

Other Speakers include Helen Freedman of Americans for a Safe Israel, Brooklyn Assemblyman Dov Hikind, Jewish Voice publisher Susan Rosenbluth and Shmuel Sackett of the Jewish Leadership movement, as well as activist members of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement.

For more information call: 212 828 2424

9/11/05 9:00PM Brooklyn – Manhattan Skyline

In memory of the great tragedy that happen on September the 11th the City of New York puts up 2 beams of light for the entire month of September commemorating the 2 towers that fell, and on the 11th the beams shine with greater intensity then the rest of the month.

This is how it looks from a rooftop in our neighborhood.

NEVER FORGET

Talabani: Iraq not ready for Israel ties

Iraqi President Jalal Talabani made clear on Friday that Iraq was not yet ready for diplomatic ties with Israel and that it would not follow the Pakistani model and begin negotiations with Israeli officials.

Speaking at the Saban Center for Middle East Policy in Washington, Talabani said Iraq would recognize Israel only after the Arab League resolutions concerning the Israeli–Palestinian conflict were implemented and after a Palestinian state was declared.

“We are committed to the decisions taken unanimously by the Arab summit in Beirut,” said Talabani in response to questions presented by Israeli reporters at the event. “Many Arab states are forming relations with Israel and if Israel will reach an agreement with the Palestinians, it will facilitate [having relations with Israel].”

Jewish Groups Oppose Rabbi’s Claim That Hurricane Was G-d’s Punishment

Jewish groups have strongly condemned remarks by a leading Israeli rabbi who said that Hurricane Katrina was God’s way of punishing the United States.

Rabbi Ovadia Yosef, a former Sephardi chief rabbi and the influential spiritual leader of the Shas political party, made the claim during his weekly sermon on Tuesday (Sept. 6). He said that the devastation wrought by Katrina “was God’s retribution” for pressuring Israel to relinquish Gaza and the northern West Bank to the Palestinians.

Yosef, a Torah scholar who often mixes religion and politics, said that President Bush perpetrated the removal of Jewish settlers and Israeli troops from the territories, which are scheduled to be handed over to the Palestinians within weeks.

Head On Collision Rocks The Night

At 1:45 this morning a car headed down Empire Blvd. tried to make a turn up onto Troy Ave. but didn’t seem to notice an oncoming car and was to late for the other car to stop. They collided totaling both vehicles and both drivers were taken to nearby hospitals with minor injuries, just as a precautionary measure. Both drivers and passengers were not Jewish.

More Pictures in the extended article.

Campaign Day: September 8, 2005

Lurching toward the final weekend before their primary, the four major Democratic candidates for mayor filled their schedules with an eye toward a very possible runoff between Tuesday’s top two finishers.

Rep. Anthony Weiner, after voting in Congress on emergency flood funds, headed back from Washington by mid-afternoon for another televised debate among the Democratic candidates, his campaign reported.

Manhattan Borough President C. Virginia Fields sought to solidify her base among black voters.

A Dismal Reality: It Wasn’t Supposed To Be This Way

I was traveling in China when pictures of the looters in New Orleans began to appear on CNN. They were black of course. Looting and raping and burning are what blacks do when the lid loosens. Yes, I could phrase this more cautiously: These things are what some blacks, etc. or, more cutely, not all blacks are looters, but all looters….blah blah.

Yet it happens time and again. There was Los Angeles, burned in 1992. There have been Cincinnati, Miami, Seattle, Washington DC, Chicago, Detroit, Crown Heights, Watts, Newark, on and on and on. When the law loses its grip, the looting begins.

We have come to expect it. Members of my tour group in China to whom I spoke assumed that the looters were black before watching. They had seen it before. I knew it before I saw the pictures. The looters are always black except when, occasionally, they are Latino. If they were looting for food it would be understandable. But that isn’t what is happening. Few of us eat television sets. Nike’s running shoes are not particularly digestible.

Chabad Carnival to Bring Joy to Hurricane Victims

Chabad is sponsoring a free carnival for the Hurricane Katrina evacuees now sheltered in S. Antonio, Texas, announced Rabbi Boruch Shlomo Cunin, Director of West Coast Chabad-Lubavitch.

“In response to this disaster, Chabad launched an extensive relief program to aid victims of all faiths,” said Rabbi Cunin. “In this case, we just want to bring a little happiness to all of the displaced families and children who find themselves living in airplane hangars in S. Antonio. When Chabad suggested this event to other relief organizations working in the area, they offered their enthusiastic support.”

The carnival — which is being organized by Chabad of South Texas and West Coast Chabad-Lubavitch — has received significant cooperation from many humanitarian and charitable groups, including the Red Cross, Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster (VOAD), the S. Antonio Jewish community, and local religious organizations.

EXCLUSIVE: LOS ANGELES HATZOLAH RESCUE TEAM GOES DOWN TO NEW ORLEANS TO AID IN HURRICANE RELIEF

New Orleans– members of the Los Angeles Hatzalah Volunteer Rescue Team flew down to New Orleans this week, to aid in the relief of the hurricane Katrina’s wake. 70 miles from where they landed, the Los Angeles Hatzalah Volunteer Rescue Team rented a car and converted it into an emergency response vehicle and were assigned a code name, “One Whiskey Zulu”.

Once they arrived, they immediately began aiding in the rescue and relief of the victims of the hurricane.

Here are some pictures of what is going on down there. “a picture is worth a thousand words” so there is no need for further writing, the rest of this article lies in the pictures.
also, don’t forget to check the Los Angeles Hatzolah Web site at: HATZOLAH of Los Angeles | Emergency Medical Services

More pictures in the extended article.

New Orleans Jews begin rebuilding

About 15 members of what was the 9,000-strong New Orleans Jewish community are estimated to still be in the Hurricane Katrina-blighted city, and arrangements were being finalized Monday to “pluck them out,” said Adam Bronstone, the director of community relations at the Jewish Federation of Greater New Orleans.

Speaking to The Jerusalem Post by telephone from Houston, Texas, to where some 5,000 of the New Orleans Jews are estimated to have relocated, Bronstone said the federation had reestablished contact with “a lot” of the community, and he was fairly confident that all community members were safe, even if they hadn’t made contact, because they’d had sufficient time and the capability to leave ahead of the devastation.