FREE GILAD

TODAY, JUNE 25, MARKS THE 3 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF GILAD SHALIT'S KIDNAPPING. AN ISRAELI SOLDIER CAPTURED ON ISRAELI SOLDIER BY HAMAS TERRORISTS. HE HAS BEEN HELD PRISONER SINCE THEN.

PLEASE REMEMBER HIM AND PRAY FOR A SUCCESSFUL MILITARY RESCUE

Still A Man of Destiny

This is a time of testing for our nation. Particularly it is a time of testing for the national camp. The Elections were one test, this 2nd test is much more serious.

The Prime Minister of Israel is someone who probably has more pressure on him than anyone else in the world. Because we have allowed it in the past in order to have friends, we have let these "friends" simply tell us what to do, as if we were their personal possession. And we have acquiesced to many of their demands...or given lip service to agreement.

But today we have elected a man who holds Zionist values, who has the capacity to stand strong in the face of this pressure. And, last night, in his first speech before the nation and the world, in my opinion, he did just that.

But Bibi, no matter what he does or doesn't do, is lambasted by both the left and the right. He is the classic example of damned if he does and damned if he doesn't. The left can do what they want, but I still associate myself with the right and I am appalled at the cat calls to bring down this government.

What are these people thinking? Thank God the calls have died down given a day or two... yet there are still plenty of negative words like betrayal, buckling to America, etc.

As I have said before, if the train is off course and careening at breakneck speed down the side of the hill, the FIRST THING you have to do is STOP THE TRAIN. After that you can figure out how to get it back on the track.

All those who are feeling that Bibi's mere mention of a Palestinian state gives credibility to it and are ready to throw in the towel are not thinking clearly. Like a Palestinian state has never been mentioned by our government before? With whom would they replace Bibi? Tzipi Livni?? who not only wants the PA State to take all of Judea and Samaria but also all of east Jerusalem and the Golan??

Bibi outlined a Palestinian state that cannot exist - one that recognizes us as a Jewish state, one that is demilitarized, one that cannot have Jerusalem, etc. He knows and we all know that that will never happen. So, basically Bibi was saying, in the most clever of ways, "in your dreams, baby."

The PA got it. Not in a thousand years, they said. The Peace Process is dead. Why can't we get it?

Of all the times in our national camp history, we need to support this prime minister.

Obama was embarrassingly put in a corner. He couldn't say Bibi didn't recognize the option of two states...yet he, of course, knows as well it's not gonna work like that. To save face he went right back to "no settlements", but now there's no power in his words, his words have lost their punch.

What Bibi did was give us a platform to restate and affirm our sovereign position. No past agreements have ever worked, and he, better than anybody, can eloquently point that out. He can then say the obvious: "Here's the PA state we would accept. No deal? OK, no deal. End of story. We will annex the entire Judea and Samaria and finally put this subject to rest. It's time to move on."

That of course could be my own dream. But it's possible, and I am a firm believer in the impossible, so certainly I can put my stock in the possible.

America can and most likely will, turn it's corporate back on Israel. They will tighten the screws and in the end, will probably abandon our friendship. America then will truly be a divided nation as the people, for the most part, are with us. But God will not tolerate the turning stance against Israel. I'm afraid for America on many levels.

We, on the other hand, will stand alone in the nations, but with the power of the Almighty as our wings and strength. It's not easy, it will get even harder, but it's the only solution.

I still believe that Bibi Netanyahu is a man of destiny - no matter the pundits cackles and calls, and no matter the well-meaning, but short-sightedness of the leaders of the various Zionist movements.

I don't know about you but I'm checking for my seat belts, and grateful the miklat is now cleared of furniture. But then I'm offering a prayer to heaven to see us through.

Bibi's Long Awaited Speech

I am really proud of Bibi. He was brilliant. There should be no complaints on the right, but already I see them coming in. We truly are our own worst enemy.

Bibi outlined very clearly that if there was ever to be a Palestinian state, we had to be recognized as a Jewish one. This is clearly something the Palestinians will never, ever agree to ...but it will be on their heads not ours.

He countered every demand of Obama's but in the most eloquent diplomatic way.

He said the "words" Palestinian State, BUT...

• He never ever said how big or where it would be. He continually spoke of Judea and Samaria as being ours.
• If there is a Palestinian state we must be recognized as a Jewish one
• Any Palestinian State would have to be demilitarized - no army, no weapons (a slap in the face to American demands to build up the PA army
• Our right to be in this Land is NOT BECAUSE OF OUR SUFFERING THROUGH PERSECUTIONS LIKE THE SHOAH, but because of our eternal right to this Land as Jews. It is and always has been our homeland. The direct opposite of Obama's speech.
• No new settlements will be established but building WILL CONTINUE in the established ones...again the direct opposite of Obama's demands
• He was absolutely clear about no arab return to the Israel.
• He was absolutely clear that Jerusalem will not be divided

The PA heard what he said. Here was Saeb Ereket's response to Bibi's speech:

Senior PA negotiator Saeb Erikat said that “Netanyahu will have to wait a thousand years befire he finds a Palestinian who agrees to his suggestions. He has unilaterally eliminated all of the final status subjects like Jerusalem, refugees and security.”

“I turn to President Obama,” he said – “Netanyahu’s speech is a slap in the face to your speech.”

Too bad and so sad that our own right-wing leadership didn't listen to the words and the intent.

KOL HAKAVOD BIBI. YOU DID IT!!

The Speech in Cairo - Weighing In At Last

It took me 6-7 careful reads and 4 days of studying Obama's speech before I saw it.

Even though I knew, I was stunned - shocked - when I saw it. Of course it was apparent by everything he said...but still, there it was - completely out in the open.

I had nearly finished writing this piece. I took one last look at his speech, when suddenly, leaping off the page was one word, confirming all that I had just written.

Barak Obama, President of the United States, upon announcing how Muslim communities and countries around the world could achieve better economic development and opportunity through various interaction with, and help from, America, said this:

All these things must be done in partnership. Americans are ready to join with citizens and governments- community organizations, religious leaders, and businesses in Muslim communities around the world to help our people pursue a better life.

If I were giving this speech, (thank G-d I couldn't) directed to a Muslim audience throughout the world, stating how America could help Muslims pursue a better life, I would have said your people. For sure. Never "our people."
A Freudian slip that no one caught....even his excellent speech writers, but then I'm sure that word was not in his notes...or was it?

Let this sink in for a while.
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My original article follows - basically it drew the same conclusion. Obama's speech can be found at the White House Press website:

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Reluctantly I will weigh in on Obama....at last. I know many have been waiting for TodayinIsrael's take on the current round of events - in particular Obama's much awaited speech in Cairo.

I say reluctantly because there is so much to contemplate, it's almost bigger than words..yet words will be necessary to convey at least part of it. These recent defining moments have been a long time in coming - the beginning outward manifestations of all we know that has been brewing beneath the surface. The unadulterated, virulent anti-Jewish/Israel animal has been uncaged again and is standing at the door...

Of course the beast was always there, lurking, making much noise, but it has needed permission to become unleashed...and I believe that Barak Obama has taken the keys given him and unlocked the door.

I want to be frank. When I first encountered Barak Obama in 2000 I knew he was a rising star. It didn't matter that he lost the race for a seat in the House of Representatives, there was something that caused me to be directed to his persona. I knew then, and I spoke it to some, that this man would be the President one day, that he would be a world leader, that it would happen quickly and it would not be good - in fact, it would be very bad.

We have entered that time. While I am no predictor of the future, and I do not know the specifics of how it will all pan out, I do know that the forces against Israel are strengthening quickly and Barak Obama has stepped to center stage at this time in history for a purpose. It is his destiny.

Who is Barak Obama? For all his supposed charisma and having attained the worlds most influential seat of power, he is still just a player in the game. Nevertheless, he is an important player. Perhaps we should take another look at him vis-à-vis this speech, for I think it matters.

It matters because I believe Obama is the catalyst for bringing together the Muslim and the western Christian worlds. Bringing together the two worlds results in only one thing - deep trouble for Israel. Obama states this union as his goal: "I have come here to see a new beginning between the United States and Muslims around the world.. ...America and Islam are not exclusive...they overlap and share common principles." So together are they in his thinking that Obama recently said that America was a Muslim nation. His statement in an interview on French television was that based on sheer numbers, America would be one of the largest Muslim nations in the world. (btw, not at all true as there are only about 1.8 million Muslims in America (Pew Center report) making it come in about spot #48-50).

This shouldn't be a problem, as he appears to be speaking theoretically, except for one thing. The goal of Islam is to have the world under a global Islamic caliphate. By referencing the US as a Muslim nation, he has moved it from a theoretical idea to an achievable one. Obama has legitimized this goal and I believe he knew exactly what he was saying. His statement should raise enormous questions and many hackles.

Again I ask, who is Barak Obama? He rose too quickly, too slickly for us to know. I was never one to get into the Kenyan birth issue because I thought that regardless of the fact that he may have been born there, his mother was an American citizen and close enough to the 18 year previous citizenship for him to qualify as a US citizen. But something else must have been amiss for him to hide and never reveal his birth information, even going so far as locking up the information with no access and successfully squashing the myriads of lawsuits against his secrecy.

When Obama said in Egypt that he had "known Islam on three continents before coming to the region where it was first revealed" - and he had just reiterated his father's Kenyan muslim history, his own time in Indonesia, and his muslim experiences in America - he revealed something that he has been vehemently trying to deny. For Kenya to be one of the three continents where he experienced Islam, either he was in fact born there or he spent considerable time there...which is not a problem in itself, but because of the secrecy there must be something we are not to know about this Kenyan experience.

His obvious affinity and connection to Islam has never been a secret, but was certainly downplayed during the elections. Now, secure in victory, it seems Obama can take off the outer wraps a bit. His week, including the visit to Saudi Arabia prior to Cairo has been one signal giving: Listen carefully, I am one of you.

Obama's purpose in meeting with King Abdullah before his speech in Egypt was one of recognition of the authority to which he wished to acquiesce. "I thought it was very important to come to the place where Islam began and to seek his majesty's counsel ..."

This was no politically correct gesture prior to meeting with certain nations and/or leaders. I can't recall him coming to Israel, where Judaism began, and seeking the wisdom and counsel of Binyamin Netanyahu or one the Chief Rabbis. For that matter, I have never seen him bow before any other king or leader, but twice now he has bowed before King Abdullah, signifying much).

His speech, his message is really no surprise. From the recesses of his memory and the depth of his adherence to the tenants of Islam, came calls to prayer, quotes from the "holy" Koran, punishment (a revealing word) for those who disagree with the right of women to wear hijabs.

There were some very strange statements, among them declaring that part of the responsibility of the President of the United States is to "fight against negative stereotypes of Islam wherever they appear." Huh? I don't recall THAT being in the US Constitution.

Obama's speech was rife with assertions that were factually incorrect....yet few seem to notice. (One columnist, Victor Davis Hanson, apparently did and has discussed a number of his incorrect statements on JWR). Most of the glaring misrepresentations were for the purpose of enhancing the "glory of Islam". Crediting Islamic cultural achievement rather than Byzantine as the forerunner to European Renaissance and Enlightenment may be a matter of historical interpretation, but claiming Andalusia and Cordoba to be examples of "tolerant Islam" during the Spanish Inquisition was simply a blatant distortion of the facts. In fact Andalusia fell to Christian monarchs Isabella and Ferdinand at the outset of the Inquisition and Cordoba had been under Catholic control at least 150 years before the Inquisition began.

Crediting the achievements of others to the glory of Islam seemed to be the order of the day. Taking Jewish theology, history and/or Jewish thought and falsely attributing them to either Christianity or Islam is called replacement theology or thinking. It is part of the institutionalized attempts to remove the Promises of God to the Jewish people and apply the Promises to the new religions instead. Claiming Israel as the historic homeland for the "palestinians" complete with a "longing for" Jerusalem, using the very language that Jews have cried out with for centuries and centuries is part of this replacement process.

In one of the more offensive proclamations of his whole Cairo speech, Obama proudly declared that the "holy Koran" teaches "that whoever kills an innocent, it is as if he has killed all mankind; and whoever saves a person, it is as it he has saved all mankind."" An excellent message. The only problem is that this was a (Jewish) Talmudic teaching, written in the 2nd century CE, 300 years before Muhammad was born. (Whoever destroys a soul, it is considered as if he destroyed an entire world. And whoever saves a life, it is considered as if he saved an entire world.- Babylonian Talmud, Sanhedrin 4:8 (37a))

How dare he.

He made some startling admissions. He is committed, he says, to help American muslims fulfill zakat (tzedekah or charity), when he and everyone else knows perfectly well that Islamic zakat is set up through many organizations for the purpose of jihad.

But perhaps the most frightening, and unrecognized by the world at large, was his shocking mention of the story of Isra as an example of what Jerusalem should be - a place of three faiths living together (mentioning the meeting of Muhammad, Moses, and Jesus found in the Isra legend). In this Obama sent a VERY specific message to the Arab world. Isra is the legend of the dream of Muhammad ascending to heaven from the "furthest place of worship", which they now claim was Jerusalem. It is because of this "dream" that Islam lays claim to Jerusalem. (At the time of the dream there was no mosque in Jerusalem - Medina was the "furthest place of worship"). In addition, in Islam's convoluted imagination, Moses and Jesus are Muslim prophets, not Jews or in Jesus case - founder of Christianity), and Muhammad is the supreme ruler. This statement signaled to the Muslim world that he, Barak Obama, agrees with their claim to Jerusalem and the supremacy of Islam. (note: this is such an important matter that a new blog is forthcoming on this subject)

Writers across the world have pointed out Obama's egregious slap in the face to Israel, comparing palestinian "suffering" with slavery and segregation imposed by a white colonial power, and comparing their "suffering" with the horrors of the holocaust. My God!! Again, how dare he compare the suffering the arabs who are being abused by their own leaders, to the atrocities committed against Jews in the holocaust.

But there is one more very glaring mistake that shows the erroneous and fateful decision making process in Obama's mind. It is in his description of the aspirations of two peoples for a homeland. Even if one removed everything else from his speech, Obama's insistence that both the Jews and the Palestinian arabs have equal aspirations for a homeland, resulting from equal suffering, entirely wipes out the validity of Israel as the eternal and ancient homeland of the Jewish people - from time immemorial. It assumes, very wrongly, that Jews sought a homeland only as a place of refuge from the horrors of the Shoah. It negates completely the eternal longing we as Jews have always had to return to the Land given to us by God, the place He swore He would bring us back to, the Land and the City we have prayed for and longed for. In other words, equal aspirations for a homeland negates us as the Jewish People, Am Yisrael, and makes us simply Jews among the nations, one of multiple peoples.

I have to admit, we ourselves must share some blame for mistaken notions such as this. We ourselves have spoken that Israel was just place of refuge following the Shoah and shout "never again" (because we now have a homeland where we can govern ourselves. (and that is now debatable). We considered, but rejected, Uganda. American Jews and some of our own leaders often present ourselves as Jews among the nations. We haven't said loudly enough that this is our Land, and always was.

But that's not the issue. The issue is that the leader of the most influential nation in the world has delegitimized Israel's existence as a Jewish people in their own land and has done so as a Muslim. With an understanding of what words mean in Islam as opposed to their common usage in the West, Barak Hussein Obama has delivered a powerful message to the Muslim world.

Unfortunately, it bodes ill for Israel and for Jews.

Obama may be a Christian in practice, but he is a Muslim in thought. At best he is a dual citizen of both worlds, at worst, he is a wolf in sheep's clothing. It would be nice to give him the benefit of the doubt, but coded words, blatant distortion of fact, and secrecy belie his innocence.

Where there truly is an overlap and shared common principle between Islam and much of the West, the common ground usually has to do with the common belief that Israel cannot exist as a Jewish state, with a common hatred of Israel. The common ground of replacement theology: there is no longer the Promise of God for Jews.

Instead, the truth, Obama said, was "pulsed in the cradle of civilization" and isn't Christian, or Muslim or Jew(ish). God's vision, he said, is simply that we live together in peace...

Two peoples, each aspiring for a homeland because of their similar sufferings...must come to terms with this universal desire for peace. How? Israel must give up the Land.

In the Muslim mind, peace comes when the world is under the global Islamic caliphate. It is the will of Allah.