Signs that the Redemption is near?

 

It’s the end of the month again. That means it’s time to take another look at Redemption.

For years, the American magazine, Sports Illustrated, has run a weekly mini-report entitled, “Signs of the Apocalypse” (or something like that). It contains a one-or-two sentence announcement that features some weekly occurrence in the Sports world. Typically, it focuses on someone doing something really stupid. It highlights how incredibly awful highly-paid or famous people can be. Such behaviour by those we honour, the piece suggests, is surely a sign that our world must soon end.

Mostly, these incidents entertain.

That magazine comes from America. We live in Israel, which follows a different religious and spiritual orientation. So if someone in America thinks about Christian-inspired world Destruction, perhaps we can think about something different--a Jewish-inspired Redemption.

Consider now some recent examples from the news that, in some way—humorous and not so humorous-- might suggest that the world might be preparing for something New. If you don’t see how these headlines might pre-sage a Jewish Redemption, that’s okay. That just means that your ‘Redemption training’ isn’t up-to-date.


For August 2013:

-Tenn. judge changes infant's name from 'Messiah' (Associated Press)

 

-Mohammed Second Most Popular Name in UK Last Year (Arutz Sheva)

 

- Angel City Brewery set to unveil -- wait for it -- an avocado beer (Los Angeles Times)

 

- Cats Are Actually Man's Best Friend (Wall Street Journal)

 

-Israel Ranks Fourth Globally in Health Care Efficiency (The Algemeiner)

 

-'Impoveris​hed' Gaza feels Pinch of fewer Mercedes-B​enz Sales (American Thinker)

 

-Bubonic plague outbreak feared in central Asia (The Guardian)

 

-Scientists seeking answers for outbreak of dolphin deaths (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

-A honey that prevents cancer? I do believe it (The Times of London)

 

If you were looking for signs of Redemption in August, 2013, you were not disappointed. The coming of avocado beer, for example, seemed a particularly propitious way to think about Redemption on a hot August night.  

Think about it: if your daily allotment of vitamin C also makes you beer-ily bleary, doesn’t that mean Redemption is close?

You realize that avocado beer is related to Redemption, right?

Don’t you see the connection? Only at Redemption-time would avocado beer sell. To prove this point, ask yourself one question: under normal circumstances, would you volunteer to drink an avocado beer?

 Besides, look at the name of the brewery making the beer.  Surely, that’s a hint.

Well, beer-makers in Angel city might give us a Redemption lift, but a judge in Tennessee certainly seems like a party-pooper. While the name, Messiah, was No. 4 among the fastest-rising baby names in the United States in 2012, a judge in Tennessee put her foot down. She wanted Messiah’s family to change his (or her) name.  Perhaps she’d heard that Mohammed was the second most popular name in England, and wanted to do her part in protecting the West against someone else’s Eschatology (End of Days story); or, maybe she just had something against Messiah.

The headline wasn’t clear. But if Black Americans and Islamic Brits are giving children Redemptive-style names, shouldn’t we wonder what’s going on? Shouldn’t we ask if all this name-calling is good or bad?  

August did bring some clearer Redemption news. First, the bad guys in Gaza can’t afford as many Mercedes Benz any more.  That’s got to be good.

Cat-lovers received their own minor redemption with the headline that cats really are man’s best friend, not dogs. Then Israel—prophesied to be a Light unto the nations—was declared fourth in the world for health care efficiency.

This last headline might really be a signal that Redemption was close. Israel ranks 97^th in the world by population and 153^rd in land area. Truly, Israel is tiny. You shouldn’t expect it to rank in the top ten in any category; it’s simply too small to compete.

So when a headline announces that Israel ranks 4^th in health care efficiency, you see immediately how Israel can become a ‘Light’ for others, to show the way to something better.

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Our future beckons. The world reveals hints. It is up to us to understand what we see.

Naturally, it’s possible that all these headlines are meaningless. These news stories may have nothing to do with the Jewish Redemption. Perhaps they simply prove that nothing changes—except our perception of Redemption.

But then we see odd headlines about diseases—and about the possibility that honey has the power to block cancer. Have you ever heard of such a thing? Honey preventing cancer?

That could be a sign. It could mean we now stand on the threshold of a wondrous time when death no longer threatens. That’s not just healthy life—that’s Redemption.

Has August brought us the beginning of something New?

You tell me.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Elul, Days of Awe and John Kerry

Some days, it's tough to turn on the computer in the morning. The news is that bad.  

 For example, convicted murderers have been released from Israeli prison as a ‘peace gesture’. But the Wall Street Journal asks, why does setting murderers free bring peace? Their hate of Jews knows no bounds.

 

Israel has privately told US Secretary of State John Kerry that it will issue new construction tenders for areas not affected by peace talks. Mr Kerry accepted that explanation. But when Israel made that decision public, Kerry joined the world’s condemnations by declaring that all construction in those areas is illegitimate. He betrays Israel.

 

The European Union (EU) wants a Palestinian state along 1949 armistice lines. It calls Israel, ‘occupier’—and announces it will boycott all Jewish businesses and institutions across those lines. But the argument underlying their boycott is bogus. Those armistice lines were never intended to be borders. The EU bears false witness against Israel.

 

It is not coincidence that these anti-Israel stories began around Tisha B’Av (July 16, 2013) and continue well into the Jewish month Elul, which began this year on August 7.

 

Elul is unique. It helps Jews prepare for the Days of Awe. The Days of Awe begin on the Jewish New Year (this year, September 5). They end on the Day of Atonement, ten days later.

 

These Days of Awe are filled with fear of Heaven. This is when G-d decides our fate for the new year. It is the moment of Heavenly Judgment.   

 

Elul reminds us that Judgment comes. It is a month when our Father the King leaves His Palace and goes out ‘into the field’. He beckons us to Him.  He wants us to come to Him before that Judgment begins.   

 

During Elul, we say special prayers. We add Psalm 27, where we read about enemies surrounding us, war coming to us and G-d helping us.

These prayers—and Elul’s emphasis on recognizing the Power of G-d—create a context for these anti-Israel news stories. The context is, G-d is the ruler, not John Kerry or Mahmoud Abbas.

 

We note this context because two weeks ago US Secretary of State Kerry warned Israel that it must sign a ‘peace’ agreement with Abbas. Kerry has been told that such an agreement would create Auschwitz borders for Israel. But he ignores that. He ignores Abbas’ racist calls for a Jew-free Palestine. Instead, he demands that Israel sign off on the agreement. Then he warned that if Israel does not accept this arrangement, Israel will be subjected to world-wide isolation ‘on steroids’.

 

That warning sounded ominous. It sounded like extortion.

 

During this Elul, we see men rise to bear false witness against Israel (Psalm 27). We see men (the released prisoners) chafe to breathe violence against Israel (ibid). We see evildoers exalt themselves (Psalm 94:4, from the Ramban’s comments on Devorim, 21:14 in the weekly Torah portion for August 17, 2013).  

 

Elul reminds us that the troubles we see in the news have been foretold (Psalm 27). They’re a pre-recorded message. They come from our Tanach (Jewish Bible).

 

We have known for more than 3,000 years that the day will come when the nations will hate Israel, conspire to harm Israel and plot to destroy Israel. This is what we see now—exactly as foretold.

 

This is the context for today’s news. It is the context of Jewish Destiny.

 

In Elul, we are reminded that G-d watches. He records. He prepares an accounting. He prepares for the Days of Awe when He Judges us--measure-for-measure.

 

The Master of the Universe Judges everyone.  Individuals will be punished, measure-for-measure. Nations will be punished, measure-for-measure.  

 

It’s a simple concept. For the nations, it means that every evil committed against Jews during the last 3,000 years will be accounted for. Every act of hate, every false accusation and every murder accumulates as testimony before G-d’s Judgment.

 

The nations will pay a price for their evil. As some have said, what goes around comes around; that is, what you have done to others will now come to you, measure-for-measure.

 

This punishment will not be spread out over the next 3,000 years (to equal the evils committed during the last 3,000 years). The punishment will be compressed. The Heavenly Judgment for 3,000 years of evil will unfold over months or weeks, not centuries.

 

Here’s some advice: you don't want to be punished in any compressed way for every sin you have ever committed. You couldn’t bear the weight of it.

 

When we compare this month’s anti-Israel stories to Elul’s special prayers and readings, we realize that Edom (the West) and Yishmael (the Arab) are destined to be judged. Their account of sins will be settled. They will pay for all the killings, lies and betrayals they have ever plotted and committed against Israel.

 

 For them, that judgment will be Days of Awe on steroids.  

 

 

Why the ‘Palestinian’ cause is confusing

Here’s a test: build a sentence with the words, “peace, justice, racism, Human Rights, Palestinian, International law”. The sentence must be coherent.   

This is a litmus test. It determines if you understand the ‘Palestinian’ cause. If you fail to combine these words into a coherent structure, you might not understand what Palestinians want.

Language is like that. If your writing isn’t clear, you usually don’t understand what you’re writing about.   

Supporters of the Palestinian cause appear to have this problem. You see it in their Mission Statements.

For example, the group, Americans for a Palestinian State, uses the word ‘peace’ in its Mission Statement. That’s good. It’s clear. But then it confuses its meaning by using ‘crimes against humanity’. What’s that got to do with peace? 

The Mission Statement is confusing. It raises a question: what concerns the Palestinians--peace or crimes?

Do you really get peace when you focus on crimes?

Jews for Justice for Palestinians has a similar problem. They, too, call for peace. But then they add in justice.  

That’s confusing, too. When someone wants peace, they don’t normally add other, possibly distracting issues. Such additions complicate negotiations.  

It’s like trying to explain baseball by adding in football terms. The football language complicates your ability to explain baseball. Demanding ‘justice’ has the same effect on ‘peace.’

What do the Palestinians want—peace or something more complicated?

Isn’t peace enough?

Women’s Coalition for Peace also wants peace. But like its peers, it complicates matters by mixing in human rights and justice.

Isn’t peace enough?

Students for Justice in Palestine have close to eighty chapters at American University campuses. But most of the chapter homepages aren’t clear.  Some of the homepages mention peace—and then mix in justice or international law or human rights.  What are they calling for--peace; peace and justice; or peace and human rights?

Perhaps Palestinians want peace and ‘human rights’. But then, what exactly does the phrase, ‘human rights’ mean when joined with ‘peace’?

The group, If Americans Knew, also refers to peace. But then it confuses us by throwing in justice, human rights and international law. Why? What’s wrong with just ‘peace’?

Almost every writing teacher says the same thing: if your writing is confused, you don’t know what you’re talking about. Do these groups think they’re exempt from this writing requirement—or is there something else at work here, another factor that forces these Mission Statements to become confused?

There is another factor at work. The American Education Trust suggests what that factor is. This group wants to tell the truth about the Middle East. But it suffers the same problem as other pro-Palestinian groups. It’s unclear. The best it can do for Palestine is ‘International Law’ and ‘human rights.’ It doesn’t mention peace at all.

Why is that? Perhaps peace isn’t the Palestinian goal.

If peace were the goal, everybody would be clear. Pro-Palestinian supporters wouldn’t look confused. Their Mission Statements would be simple.

We see where confusion leads in The Palestinian Solidarity Campaign (PSC). This group announces that it ‘campaigns for peace and justice for Palestinians, in support of International law and human rights and against racism.’

This statement uses all the key words of the litmus test in one sentence. But the sentence doesn’t make sense.

Look at the sentence. It starts out being ‘for’ peace. That’s a clear goal with a clear focal point. But then it adds ‘justice’.

Why? We keep seeing this combination. But no one explains it.  

Next, the sentence expresses ‘support’ for something very general (international law/ human rights). But again, why does the Palestinian cause need international law and human rights to discuss peace? There could be connections here between these ideas, but the PSC never elaborates. They just use the words without explanation.

Finally, the sentence ends by being ‘against’ racism. That’s fine--but what does racism have to do with peace (the first stated goal)? 

What’s going on here? If Palestinians want peace, they should say so. Why do they confuse that goal with other issues?

Most of the key words within this sentence do not even apply to peace negotiations. Have you noticed that? They apply mostly to what happens inside your own nation after peace.

Your English teacher is right. Confusion in your writing means you don’t understand your argument’s core concept—or you want to hide that concept.

The Palestinian cause is not about peace. They want to destroy Israel. They just want you to believe they want peace. They hide their true goals—or they have no clue what peace means.

Remember, if peace was their true goal, those Mission Statements would have a clear message. They don’t.

That can mean only one of two things: Palestinians are hiding something—or, they don’t understand peace.

Either way, they are not honest brokers.

 

The UN, the Tanach and the G-d of Israel

UN Secretary-General Ban-Ki Moon has just admitted that the United Nations discriminates against Israel (Elad Benari, “Ban-Ki Moon Admits: UN is biased against Israel”, Arutz Sheva, August 18, 2013). He admits that the world headquarters of fairness and justice hypocritically treats one of its own Members with prejudice.

The UN didn’t start out to be hateful. It began with the desire to create “respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of International law” (Charter of the United Nations, Preamble), including agreements that helped Israel become a State. That commitment should have helped Israel. What went wrong?

Incredibly, the desire for peace led the UN astray. That desire prompted the UN to seek a ‘Higher Authority’ for nations to turn to in cases of conflict. But that ‘Higher Authority’ wasn’t G-d. It was Man.

That’s when the trouble began. The UN created their ‘Higher Authority’. They called it, ‘International law.’ Then, they misused their creation.

The purpose of this law was to guide nations before conflict erupted. That should have helped Israel. It didn’t.

The law contained a flaw. It put its hope in Man.

Man’s law is like milk: it’s good for only so long. Then it turns sour.

International law began with hopes for peace. But it’s been turned into a war tactic. That tactic has a name:  lawfare.

It’s a new concept. It means warring against an enemy using a legal system to destroy that enemy. Lawfare’s favourite target is Israel.  

This is not coincidence. Despite what Man says, history conforms to the script that the G-d of Israel wrote into the Tanach (Jewish Bible) more than 2,300 years ago. Look at modern history: the United Nations was formed after World War Two. That UN created the state of Israel. Then, Arabs pursued a relentless war against Israel; militant Islam spread to Europe; world-wide movements for ‘peace and justice’ grew strong; Leftists and Jihadists joined together to ‘destroy Israel for world peace’.

It’s all in the Tanach. Israel becomes the center of the world’s attention. The world sees Israel as its enemy. Man puts Israel into the crosshairs of destruction.

In Man’s version of history—the script Man wants to write--it is Israel’s destruction that brings peace.  But Man is ignorant. He doesn’t see that his effort to destroy Israel had been predicted in the Jewish Tanach long before Christianity, Islam or the UN. 

In G-d’s History, Israel will indeed be surrounded. But it won’t be destroyed. Peace will come from Israel, not the UN. The Higher authority will become G-d, not Man.

Man rejects that view. He rejects Israel. He calls Israel,  immoral.  

But it is Man who is immoral. He lies about Israel. He ignores archaeological evidence that Jews controlled the land of Israel 3,000 years ago, and argues instead that the claim of a homeland began only after the Holocaust. He lies about Arab aggression in 1947 when the UN created a true two-state solution: Israel for the Jews and Jordan for the Arab. He ignores racist Arab calls to kill Jews. He calls Arab who murder infants, ’Freedom Fighters’.

So far, Man’s United Nations hasn’t voted to unmake Israel. But that could happen, especially when the UN itself—through it United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNWRA)--prints textbooks in Arabic which, essentially, call for destroying Israel.

The UN joins with the Arab to create a future without Israel. It sets the stage for that by condemning Israel more times than all other nations combined. A world without Israel is advertised as a winning proposition.  It certainly sounds like a good idea to Humanists, Leftists, academicians and world-wide human rights organizations. It also sounds good to Muslims, who have vowed to make Israel disappear.  

Some argue that a world without Israel will be a more just world. Christian denominations have joined an international chorus-call against Israel. Some say that only Israel is so unjust it needs ‘adjustment’. The Church of Scotland and The Church of England have recently been accused of outright anti-Semitism.

Anti-Israel Muslims, Christian leaders, atheists and Humanists add up to a world majority—perhaps 4 billion of the 6+ billion total population. Many within this majority want to destroy the world’s Jewish minority. 

Israel is stage-center, just as Tanach predicts.  There is a movement spoiling to remove her from the world map, just as predicted. The West joins with the Arab to harm Israel—just as predicted.

For Man, it doesn’t get any better than agitating against Israel. Man works hard to attack the world’s only Jewish state. He gathers at the UN to dream of a world without Israel. He rejects the G-d of Israel.

Don’t listen to Man. The Jewish Tanach has a better track-record. It’s never been wrong.

You should remember that the next time Ban-Ki Moon allows the UN to slander Israel.

The two-state solution: a case of everybody and nobody

Benjamin Netanyahu has a problem. He can’t say, ‘no’ to the President of the United States. He can’t say, ‘no’ to the President of the Palestinian Authority (PA).

Stories circulate that the United States has been disclosing secret intelligence that damages Israel (see israelmatzav blog, “Targeting Israel,” August 4, 2013; and Jonathan Tobin in Commentary Magazine as reported in love of the land blog, August 2, 2013).  The United States says it is Israel’s best friend. But its behaviour suggests otherwise.  

Still, Mr Netanyahu cannot say, ‘no’ to the United States when the US demands he surrender land to people who speak openly of destroying Israel.

Mahmoud Abbas, meanwhile, never wavers. When everybody talks ‘peace’, he pads his anti-Israel resume by honoring terrorists who murder Jews (Gil Ronen, ‘Fatah honors terrorist for Murdering 61 Israelis,’ Arutz Sheva, July 25, 2013). When new ‘peace talks’ were announced, Abbas declared that there would be no ‘Israelis’ in his new ‘Palestine’ (“Abbas: there will be no Israelis in ‘Palestine’”, news brief, Arutz Sheva, July 30, 2013).

In a region where religion is important, Abbas rejects religious freedom. In a world that advertises ‘Human Rights’, Abbas denies Rights to Jews.

Mr Netanyahu cannot say ‘no’ to Abbas.  

Obama and Abbas unite: the Arabs must have peace. But neither criticizes Muslim clerics who call to kill Jews. Neither comments on Arabs attacks against Jews during ‘peace’ talks. Neither speaks of vicious anti-Jew TV programs during the holy month of Ramadan (see “Khaybar: deception is the creed of the Jews, conspiracy their religion,” elderofzyion blog, August 1, 2013).  

Obama and Abbas may speak of peace. But neither bothers to explain how vicious Arab Jew-hate can lead to peace.  Apparently, they don’t care.

President Obama insists that Mr Netanyahu surrender Judea, Samaria and parts of Jerusalem. Netanyahu can’t say, ‘no’. Mr Abbas wants to do ethnic cleansing against Jews. Netanyahu can’t say, ‘no.’

Abbas shows everybody maps with ‘Palestine’ in place of Israel.  Nobody speaks out.

Nobody cares.

To prepare for peace, Obama makes demands on Israel. Abbas does the same thing.

Nobody pressures Abbas. Nobody cares.

Everybody demands peace. Nobody asks how Israel can transfer 450,000 Jews to bring that peace—and remain viable.

Nobody cares.

Mr Netanyahu acts as one who yearns to find acceptance in a world where everybody scorns him. He acts like he cares about what everybody thinks. His problem is, nobody cares what he thinks.  

In our Tanach (Jewish Bible), G-d tells Israel it will be different from everybody. Israel will stand apart. Israel doesn’t have to care about what everybody thinks. Israel’s job is to care about G-d.  

King David understood this. He stood strong before a scornful Goliath. He confronted his enemy by speaking G-d’s name. He became King.

Mr Netanyahu does not speak G-d’s name to his enemies. He does not follow King David.

G-d is greater than everybody. But it is everybody whom Mr Netanyahu appears to fear most.

Everybody laughs at G-d.  Mr Netanyahu sees that. Everybody tells him he must listen only to them. He hears that. He acts like he fears their rejection. But the more he acts like he fears everybody, the more everybody rejects him.

Instead of turning to G-d like a King David, he turns to everybody else. But nobody is interested in him. They just want him to surrender land to those who hate him.

When he tells everybody such surrender is dangerous, they  scowl. Nobody cares if his surrender is dangerous.  

Even Jews don’t care. For example, Tzipi Livni, the chief Jewish negotiator for the new peace talks, has argued that Israel has no choice but surrender. She, too, acts like she is afraid. She believes we cannot leave the negotiation table without a signed agreement because, she says, failure to sign would mean the end of Israel.    

She rejects G-d’s written promises. She embraces what  everybody says. Everybody wants Arabs to stand on the Judean mountain-ridge. Apparently, so does she.

Arabs are smart. They know that once they stand on that mountain ridge, they will look down at Israel’s coastal plain, just nine miles away. They will see on that coastal plain more than half of Israel’s population. They know that firing into that population from such high ground will be easier than shooting fish in a barrel.

Nobody cares about that.

The Arab is smart. He wants Israel. He demands a forced marriage.

Suddenly, everybody smiles. Nobody scowls.

Everybody pushes Israel to the altar. Everybody says that Israel can be forced to marry. Nobody objects.

Everybody smiles. What a pretty bride Israel makes! Her land is beautiful. She is wealthy. The Arab will be pleased.

Everybody wants Israel on the altar. Nobody cares what will happen to her.

With the two-state solution, beware when everybody smiles and nobody cares.

Iran: where the West abdicates to Israel

 

Many Americans who visit Jerusalem like to go shopping at the Mamilla Mall. It’s a comfortable experience. It feels almost like America.  

For something more exotic, tourists go to the Arab Shuk. There, they do not find the comfort of a familiar environment. They find only the Shuk merchant.

The Shuk is different. It isn’t air-conditioned. Often, it’s not well-lighted.  Individual shops can be tiny. Product is often not marked. Product quality is uncertain.

In America, you can shop with a copy of Consumer Reports in your hand. In the Shuk, Consumer Reports is useless. It’s just you and the Shuk salesman.

Tourists tell tales about the Shuk. They never know if they underpaid or overpaid. They never know if what they heard about their purchases was truth or fiction.

It’s all part of the shuk experience. Instead of feeling empowered by a Consumer guide, one feels only the breath of the Shuk merchant.

Middle East diplomacy works the same way. A Western diplomat in the Middle East is like a tourist at the Shuk: he never knows if what he’s been told is truth or fiction.  

We saw this with Saddam Hussein. Western diplomats were convinced that Hussein had Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD). Apparently, he did not.

No one ever found evidence of WMD in Iraq. Was it all a lie?

Now, we have Iran. As with Saddam Hussein’s claims, Iran is supposed to have a massive WMD program. But Saddam Hussein had nothing. Does Iran also have nothing?

 

Iran denies it is working towards a bomb. It says its nuclear program is for peace. Is this a lie—or the truth?  

Some argue that Saddam used a fake WMD program to promote himself as the Middle East leader, the only one capable of destroying the Arab’s greatest enemy--Israel. For a while, the ploy worked. His influence blossomed.  

This is the question the West cannot answer: is Iran—like Saddam Hussein—just another Shuk salesman playing politics? 

No one knows. The European Union says it doesn’t care. It says there are only two ways to explain Iran’s behaviour. Each explanation contradicts the other. But both, the EU says, lead to the same benign conclusion. 

 

The first explanation says that Iran has no nuclear WMD program—that, in essence, Iran’s behaviour is just shuk-talk: a lie designed to sell a product called, Iran the Great.

Therefore, there is no reason to worry. Iran is just a more sophisticated imitation of the Saddam scam.

The second explanation says that Iran will indeed produce a nuclear bomb. Nevertheless, we shouldn’t worry because Iran understands Israel’s own nuclear capability. Iran understands MAD—Mutually Assured Destruction. Iran, like the former Soviet Union, would never start a war that would guarantee its destruction.

Therefore, there is no reason to worry. A nuclear Iran will not attack Israel.

The United States, meanwhile, imitates Hamlet. President Obama makes decisions about Iran—and then unmakes them. The ‘military option’ is not on the table; it is on the table. There will be no talks with Iran; there will be talks.

His diplomacy is just another name for failure-to-act. Does this failure allow Iran to push unopposed towards its bomb?  

Now, General Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff—America’s highest ranking officer—becomes bold.  He suggests that perhaps the US should avoid direct military action against Iran altogether (Mark Langfan, “Op-Ed: Dempsey’s bombshell: no US attack on Iran, ever”, Arutz Sheva, August 6, 2013).

Hamlet’s hesitation led to tragedy. Is Obama Hamlet?

It’s an important question, given Hamlet’s end, because two reports have appeared in Israel (July 31 and August 7, 2013) that could render Obama’s “diplomacy” irrelevant. One story suggested that Iran could be ready to build nuclear bombs by mid-2014. If those bombs take six-eight months to complete, Iran could be ready for nuclear war in early-mid 2015. According to the second report, 2015 could also be the year Iran completes development of an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile capable of reaching the US.

These reports should bother Mr Obama. He expresses no concern. He will not even criticize Iran.

This indifference to Iran isolates Israel. If no one sees evil in Iran, Israel must look after itself (Jerusalem Post staff, “Official: Israel capable of unilateral strike on Iran, if US not committed”, Jerusalem Post, August 6, 2013). Israel must prepare to defend itself.

Iranian leaders have already declared that they wish to destroy both the Little Satan (Israel) and the Big Satan (America). If the West refuses to protect itself against a potential nuclear threat, it will render itself irrelevant. Its mantle of world leadership will melt.

That leadership will pass to Israel. By defending herself, she will defend everyone. Israel—not the West--will make peace possible.

If that sounds familiar, it is. It’s from our Tanach (Jewish Bible). It’s how our Jewish story ends.

  

What a ‘Palestine’ birth announcement might look like

Today, people everywhere turn to Mahmoud Abbas and Benjamin Netanyahu.  Mr Abbas, who currently serves in the eighth year of his four-year elected term as President of the Palestinian Authority, has joyously coupled with Mr Netanyahu, who serves as Prime Minister of Israel. Together, they now prepare to announce the birth of a baby called, ‘Palestine’.

The birth is scheduled to take place in Washington, DC. The midwife will be United States Secretary of State John Kerry. The Godfather is Barack Hussein Obama. The doting aunt is Israel’s Minister of Justice, Tzipi Livni.

Upon birth, the child will be wrapped in a blanket of newspaper headlines. He will be dressed by former US Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk. The baby’s dressing gown will be made of the words, “two states, living side-by-side, in peace and security” (Paul Lewis, “Former US Ambassador to Israel Martin Indyk to oversee talks with Palestinians,” The Guardian, July 29, 2013).

Immediately after birth, the baby will be placed into a basket made of promises. The basket will then be placed after dark—secretly--at the doorstep of the United Nations.

A birth announcement and a letter of introduction will be placed into the basket beside the baby. The letter will be addressed to Ban Ki-Moon, currently Secretary-General of the United Nations. In the letter, the baby’s parents will not be fully identified. Instead, the letter will instruct that, whenever the baby is mentioned, only Mr Abbas’ name be used. The letter will also contain instructions that no Jewish hands ever touch the baby.

The delivery to the UN doorstep will be made by Former Ambassador Indyk. Mr. Indyk had arrived at the labor room just hours before the birthing announcement, and his arrival was cheered.  He had been invited to the birth conference because, Secretary Kerry has said, the birthing of such a child would be tough. Mr Indyk was needed specifically because he knew how to ‘carry the load’ for the United States during any labor involving Israel. His skill is considered important because Mr Abbas has already suggested that he has a load for Mr Netanyahu. Mr Indyk has been invited to be the envoy to deliver that load.

After Mr Indyk fulfils his role, the baby will be declared ‘destitute’. He will become a ward of the United Nations.

Following the birth, there will be much rejoicing. The baby is expected to facilitate the cleansing of Jews from Judea-Samaria and Jerusalem. Mr Abbas will take personal responsibility for this purification.

Mr Abbas expects many celebrations. To encourage this joy, he has given his blessing to Jew-cleansing. He has already announced that there will be no Israelis in his new Palestine.

Mr Abbas, 78, is also known as Abu Mazen. He has received the Soviet equivalent of a PhD from the Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow. His dissertation topic was, ‘The Other Side: The Secret Relationship between Nazism and Zionism.’ He has dedicated his life’s work to destroying Israel. He understands Nazism. He hates Zionism. He will train his new baby to destroy the Zionist state.

Prime Minister Netanyahu, 63, is close to becoming the longest-ruling Prime Minister in Israel’s history. He has been extremely popular. He heads the Likud Party, which is dedicated to protecting ancestral Jewish homeland in Judea-Samaria and Jerusalem. However, in a diplomatic coup, Godfather Obama has persuaded Mr Netanyahu that joy will come not from Likud, but from the new baby.

Related to the baby are its aunt and uncle, Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood. Both Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood, like Mr Abbas’ Fatah, are committed to the destruction of Israel. Mr Abbas expects these relatives to join his rejoicing—if they don’t overthrow him for coupling with a Jew.

Mr Netanyahu does not know how his own relatives will react. He faces two issues. First is his coupling with Abbas. He does not expect much negative reaction to this. Many Jews in Israel find Mr Abbas attractive. 

The second issue for Mr Netanyahu is the baby. Many in Israel will argue that the baby should never have happened; Mr Netanyahu should have been more careful. Some will want to embrace the poor orphan. Others will feel only shame.

It is possible that the baby will never come to the Middle East. There are rumours that the G-d of Israel is not pleased to see Israel couple with Mr Abbas. Other rumours say that if Mr Abbas continues to negotiate with Israel, Arabs will assassinate him because negotiations with Jews defile the Arab dream.

In Israel, Mr Netanyahu watches polls. He trusts in them the way some trust in G-d. There are rumours he looks worried.  

Mr Abbas, however, delights in his anticipation. He celebrates as labor begins. He does not care if the G-d of Israel is angry.

He asks everyone to join his celebration.