A fatal shooting in front of a Jewish school in Toulouse, France. This is the remidner that the animosity towards Israel and Jews is not merely the result of the Israel's actions vis-a-vis Palestinians and other Arab neighbors, but also an extension of a wider phenomenon, known as "antisemitism".
Many wish to think that the antisemitism were dead and that the matter of stopping attacks against Israel were as simple as stopping setttlements construction and signing a peace accord between Israel and its neighbors. Unfortunately, the facts tell us a different story.
Monday, March 19, 2012
Saturday, March 17, 2012
The closure?
The end to the controversial case of John Demjanjuk - perhaps a prisoner of war, perhaps a Nazi concentration camp guard, perhaps an operator of the gas chambers at Treblinka. He was first sentenced to death penalty in Israel, but later released due to the reasonable doubts about his guilt. More recent sentence in Germany was mild, due to Demjanjuk's advanced age and frail health.
"The case against Mr. Demjanjuk, a retired Ford Motor Co. autoworker, first drew international attention in 1986 when he was extradited to Israel for the first war crimes trial there since the prosecution of Adolf Eichmann. Eichmann, often called the architect of the Nazis’ “final solution” for European Jews, was hanged as a war criminal in 1962.
Mr. Demjanjuk's trial in Israel included testimony from several Holocaust survivors who insisted that he was “Ivan the Terrible,” a sadistic gas chamber operator at the Nazi extermination camp of Treblinka in Poland.
More than 800,000 prisoners are reported to have died at Treblinka.
In 1988, he was convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity and was sentenced to hang.
In 1993, the Israeli supreme court ordered his release based on newly obtained documents from former
Soviet-bloc countries. The documents suggested that Mr. Demjanjuk might have been a Nazi guard but that Ivan the Terrible was probably a man named Ivan Marchenko. Prison workers were building Mr. Demjanjuk's gallows when the order came to release him."
"The case against Mr. Demjanjuk, a retired Ford Motor Co. autoworker, first drew international attention in 1986 when he was extradited to Israel for the first war crimes trial there since the prosecution of Adolf Eichmann. Eichmann, often called the architect of the Nazis’ “final solution” for European Jews, was hanged as a war criminal in 1962.
Mr. Demjanjuk's trial in Israel included testimony from several Holocaust survivors who insisted that he was “Ivan the Terrible,” a sadistic gas chamber operator at the Nazi extermination camp of Treblinka in Poland.
More than 800,000 prisoners are reported to have died at Treblinka.
In 1988, he was convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity and was sentenced to hang.
In 1993, the Israeli supreme court ordered his release based on newly obtained documents from former
Soviet-bloc countries. The documents suggested that Mr. Demjanjuk might have been a Nazi guard but that Ivan the Terrible was probably a man named Ivan Marchenko. Prison workers were building Mr. Demjanjuk's gallows when the order came to release him."
New Vice President?
On Bin Laden's plot to kill Obama:
"“The reason for concentrating on them,” the al-Qaeda leader explained to his top lieutenant, “is that Obama is the head of infidelity and killing him automatically will make [Vice President] Biden take over the presidency. . . . Biden is totally unprepared for that post, which will lead the U.S. into a crisis. As for Petraeus, he is the man of the hour . . . and killing him would alter the war’s path” in Afghanistan."
My comments
1. This has to do more with the Obama re-election campaign than with the existence of an actual plot. After all, this information was selected by the Obama's own Administration from the classified documents, allegedly captured in the Bin Laden's compound. And the Administration itself clarifies that the threats were never credible.
2. Releasing the information that discredits Biden as unprepared for the role of the Commander-in-Chief might mean that Obama is readying to dump Biden in favor of another vice-presidential candidate (perhaps, somebody more economically savvy, and also a younger one , who would be able to run for the White House in 2016 election.)
"“The reason for concentrating on them,” the al-Qaeda leader explained to his top lieutenant, “is that Obama is the head of infidelity and killing him automatically will make [Vice President] Biden take over the presidency. . . . Biden is totally unprepared for that post, which will lead the U.S. into a crisis. As for Petraeus, he is the man of the hour . . . and killing him would alter the war’s path” in Afghanistan."
My comments
1. This has to do more with the Obama re-election campaign than with the existence of an actual plot. After all, this information was selected by the Obama's own Administration from the classified documents, allegedly captured in the Bin Laden's compound. And the Administration itself clarifies that the threats were never credible.
2. Releasing the information that discredits Biden as unprepared for the role of the Commander-in-Chief might mean that Obama is readying to dump Biden in favor of another vice-presidential candidate (perhaps, somebody more economically savvy, and also a younger one , who would be able to run for the White House in 2016 election.)
Friday, March 16, 2012
Supply and Demand
A cool really cool experiment in supply&demand for parking in San Francisco:
"But San Francisco is trying to shorten the hunt with an ambitious experiment that aims to make sure that there is always at least one empty parking spot available on every block that has meters. The program, which uses new technology and the law of supply and demand, raises the price of parking on the city’s most crowded blocks and lowers it on its emptiest blocks. While the new prices are still being phased in — the most expensive spots have risen to $4.50 an hour, but could reach $6 — preliminary data suggests that the change may be having a positive effect in some areas."
Predictably, social groups object this policy and complain about its negative effect on "social equity":
"But raising prices is rarely popular. A chapter in Mr. Shoup’s book opens with a quote from George Costanza, the “Seinfeld” character: “My father didn’t pay for parking, my mother, my brother, nobody. It’s like going to a prostitute. Why should I pay when, if I apply myself, maybe I can get it for free?” Some San Francisco neighborhoods recently objected to a proposal to install meters on streets where parking is now free. And raising prices in the most desirable areas raises concerns that it will make them less accessible to the poor."
Added later: As far as I understand, there is a caveat: the experiment really models not supply&demand in an ideal market, but a price discrimination behavior by a monopolist.
"But San Francisco is trying to shorten the hunt with an ambitious experiment that aims to make sure that there is always at least one empty parking spot available on every block that has meters. The program, which uses new technology and the law of supply and demand, raises the price of parking on the city’s most crowded blocks and lowers it on its emptiest blocks. While the new prices are still being phased in — the most expensive spots have risen to $4.50 an hour, but could reach $6 — preliminary data suggests that the change may be having a positive effect in some areas."
Predictably, social groups object this policy and complain about its negative effect on "social equity":
"But raising prices is rarely popular. A chapter in Mr. Shoup’s book opens with a quote from George Costanza, the “Seinfeld” character: “My father didn’t pay for parking, my mother, my brother, nobody. It’s like going to a prostitute. Why should I pay when, if I apply myself, maybe I can get it for free?” Some San Francisco neighborhoods recently objected to a proposal to install meters on streets where parking is now free. And raising prices in the most desirable areas raises concerns that it will make them less accessible to the poor."
Added later: As far as I understand, there is a caveat: the experiment really models not supply&demand in an ideal market, but a price discrimination behavior by a monopolist.
God is willing!
This quote from Rick Santorum deserves a place in my "Theatre of the Absurd" collection:
"Can Rick Santorum get his wish and force a brokered convention in Tampa? Mitt Romney’s campaign said it would take an “act of God” for Santorum to secure enough delegates to win the nomination, and last night Santorum seemed to side with the former Massachusetts governor.
“One of my opponents recently said that it would take an act of God for me to win this primary. I agree with him,” Santorum told the congregation at an evangelical church in Puerto Rico."
"Can Rick Santorum get his wish and force a brokered convention in Tampa? Mitt Romney’s campaign said it would take an “act of God” for Santorum to secure enough delegates to win the nomination, and last night Santorum seemed to side with the former Massachusetts governor.
“One of my opponents recently said that it would take an act of God for me to win this primary. I agree with him,” Santorum told the congregation at an evangelical church in Puerto Rico."
Thursday, March 15, 2012
Wednesday, March 14, 2012
Most prestigious professions in Israel
Impressive order of priorities:
"The Dahaf Institute survey, led by Dr. Mina Tzemah, also examined the public’s views of the status of the profession of scientist. Individuals in the medical profession were rated number one in prestige, while scientific professions were number two.
Somewhat lower were engineers, followed by teachers and military officers. The least respected profession was being a Knesset member. Teaching has risen in prestige, from 11th place in 2009 to fourth today."
"The Dahaf Institute survey, led by Dr. Mina Tzemah, also examined the public’s views of the status of the profession of scientist. Individuals in the medical profession were rated number one in prestige, while scientific professions were number two.
Somewhat lower were engineers, followed by teachers and military officers. The least respected profession was being a Knesset member. Teaching has risen in prestige, from 11th place in 2009 to fourth today."
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