The Scribbler

This website is quite extraordinary, even more so if you've made the journey up the snake path, which I have done on numerous occasions. It's really the only way to get up there...and using the cable car is cheating! You haven't lived properly until you've seen the sunrise over the Dead Sea. 3D Tour of Masada

Well folks, we are on the cusp of a new Gregorian year and looking back, there's been quite a bit that's occupied my thoughts. The problem is that I can't quite remember it all. Is it me, or do events that took place in the first half of the year (I mean, January 2008...when was that ?) just seem to be lost in the haze? Of course the main features of the year will no doubt be the Credit Crunch, the Olympics and the recent news concerning Israel beating the crap out of Hamas . Then again, maybe it's the more subtle points that I'll want to remember in the future. For me, this hasn't been a particularly easy year. I suppose the high point was the fabulous result our school got after the Ofsted inspection in March, a fact that made me feel extremely proud. That said, I've struggled with my classes, experienced frustration with the amount of progress they've made, blamed myself for this and continued trying to achieve more. I don't recall ever working a...

Whilst the world's media is automatically demonising Israel, without bothering to get the facts right (which is nothing new), a number of illuminating statements have appeared in the Palestinian Media. I want to share this with you, because you won't find this on CNN or Sky or the BBC. YOu certainly won't see it in a "quality" newspaper like The Guardian. All of the following can be found at www.memri.com Abu Mazen: We Told [Hamas] - "Don't End the Tahdiah " In his visit to Egypt, PLO Chairman Mahmoud Abbas (Abu Mazen) placed the responsibility for the Israeli attack on Hamas, saying, "We called the leaders of Hamas, and told them both directly and directly, through Arab parties and non-Arab parties. We talked with them on the phone. We told them, 'Please, do not end the tahdiah .'"(1) Nimr Hammad, an advisor to Mahmoud Abbas, said: "The one responsible for the massacres is Hamas, and not the Zionist entity, which i...

After years of rockets, Israel has decided restraint is not an option anymore. To support Israel in its war with Hamas, Giyus (Give Israel Your Unified Support) is stepping up its Facebook activities. GIYUS will be using their Facebook page to post Facebook related actions supporing Israel's actions against Hamas. Please join them in this effort - if you're on Facebook you are invited to join the page - http://www.facebook.com/pages/GIYUS/40831469053 to receive and participate in their call-to-actions and help Israel win the online public diplomacy battle. Remember that the war is being fought both on and off the battelfield. If you care about Israel, please show your support and stand up proudly to be counted a true friend of the only democracy in the Middle East and the only Jewish country in the entire world.

Unlike our Palestinians neighbours, it gives me no pleasure whatsoever to know that Arabs have been killed. I won't go around handing out sweets "celebrating" the deaths of women and children. I'm Jewish and we don't do that kind of thing. When G-d destroyed the Egyptians at the Sea of Reeds, we didn't spend our time dancing around celebrating the end of that part of the Dynasty. Yes, we sang and praised G-d, but were very careful to make sure we were doing so in the spirit of salvation. In fact, we expressly don't say the full Hallel (praise) Prayer on Pesach precisely because G-d vanquished humans that He had created - just like us on the shores of the recently split sea. I write this as I look at the results of Israel's actions yesterday. I believe in my heart of hearts that this was something that Israel had to do, to get the message to the Arabs that shelling our cities night and day was not in any way acceptable and that if one goes down that ve...

I've come to sadly expect pretty much anything when I switch on TV. From watching a man commit suicide in Switzerland to seeing a pig being pleasured (I kid you not), broadcasters pretty much know no bounds. I could get rid of the TV, but that wouldn't stop the programmes being shown and what's worse, people actually watching them. Keeping this in mind, I have to say that I am shocked - and this is not a word I use lightly - at Channel Four's decision to let Ahmedinejad, the vile, anti-Semitic, nuclear-crazed President of Iran deliver it's alternative Xmas message. Maybe naively, it didn't cross my mind that anyone would think of pulling this sick Xmas joke (as it's being referred to in the Media) - which. by its very nature seems to go against everything that Xmas is meant to be about. Not being a Christian, I was brought up to believe that this very day was one of peace and goodwill to all men. I cannot see how this piece of human garbage could be seen t...

אבינו שבשמים תשמור על גלעד שליט החייל החטוף למען ילדיך אהובים שאתה אוהב. תשמור עליו מכל צרה ומכל פגע בבקשה אלוהים תחזיר אותו הביתה בריא ושלם אנחנו בניך מבקשים ,תשמור עליו Our Father in Heaven, guard over Gilad Shalit, the captured soldier, for the beloved children that you (yourself) love. Guard over him (to protect him) from all suffering and from all attacks, please O Lord, return him home healthy and complete. We, your children ask, please guard over him.

There was this couple that had been married for 20 years. Every time they made love the husband always insisted on shutting off the light. Well, after 20 years the wife felt this was ridiculous. She figures she would break him of this crazy habit. So one night, while they were in the middle of a wild, screaming, romantic session, she turned on the lights. She looked down and saw her husband was holding a battery-operated leisure device... A vibrator! Soft, wonderful and larger than a real one. She went completely ballistic. "You impotent bastard," She screamed at him, "How could you be lying to me all of these years? You better explain yourself!" The husband looks her straight in the eyes and says calmly: "I'll explain the toy . . You explain the kids."

Your House As Seen By: You... Your Buyer.... Your Lender... Your Mortgage Valuer... Your Council Tax Assessor...

I'd like to start by wishing all of my Jewish visitors a Chanukah Sameach, a happy, joyous Chanukah. May the lights of the Chanukiah, the eight branched candelabra, bring some very special light into your life - and the lives of your families. Can one think of the light emanating from a Chanukiah as being a "Jewish light"? It's definitely not the same type as the one you find glistening off a Christmas tree. Don't misunderstand me. I don't have a problem with people buying trees. I don't have an issue at all if my fellow Gentile inhabitants of our little planet want to celebrate the birth of Christ. It's their right, nay duty to do so and merrily on may they continue. Where I start to get nervous is when my Hebraic brethren start to do so as well. What's all the more worrying, particularly at this juncture of the season, is when they start to view Chanukah as being the Jewish Christmas. Now I'm not talking about Jews buying Christmas trees, wh...

The deaths of 25 Russian travel agents (and the injuries of another 33) in yet another horrific crash on Israel roads is sadly something that doesn't surprise most of us anymore. Anyone who has visited the amazing country that we proudly call our own is all too aware of the reckless driving practised by many of the countries' citizens. That the crash was caused by coach drivers racing one another on a narrow stretch of road, makes the tragedy all the more heartbreaking. The Transport Ministry in Israel has to do something to change the situation. More people die as a result of the appalling driving than through any terrorist attack. How many more shattered families does it need for effective measures to be introduced? I've been on the road where the accident has happened and you have too probably as it is on the way to Eilat - a very popular destination. Need I add more? ____________________ It's the sinking ...

This makes me feel positively sick Leaflet: Mumbai Chabad attack ‘God’s punishment’ December 15, 2008 JERUSALEM (JTA) -- The terror attack on the Mumbai Chabad House was a punishment from God, a leaflet said. The leaflet distributed over the weekend in Jerusalem by the anti-Zionist, fervently Orthodox Neturei Karta group said the attack was God's punishment for Chabad's work with "Zionist" Israelis, the Israeli news site Ynet reported Monday. The leaflet criticized Chabad for hosting both religious and secular Jews without distinguishing "between good and evil, right and wrong, pure and impure, a Jew and a convert, a believer and a heretic," Ynet reported. The article also criticized Chabad for inviting the heads of state of Israel to the funeral of Gavriel and Rivkah Holtzb...

It is an old cliche but I'm reminded of the famous phrase, "the darkest hour is before dawn" at this particular moment. Maybe its the grey sky that I've been seeing all week, because at this moment, at the skewed junction of the last few hours of the weekend and the start of my final week of 2008 in school, I'm feeling particularly low. If I were to use an adjective to describe my state of mind right now, it would be emotional saturation. Saturated. Now there's an apt term for a Sunday night. It is the feeling that my capacity to deal with anything that hits me is so browbeaten that any additional sock-it-to-me-sucker-why-don't-you insult will only be internalised and added to the existing pile of broken-down slam-dunk punches. Please don't think I'm writing this because I'm feeling sorry for myself. Far from it, I'm too exhausted to do that. Self-pity, as a modus vivendi is so tiring and pointless that I honestly can't be bothered to ...

By Ron Prosor "The Palestinian Authority recently took the unprecedented step of advertising the Arab Peace Initiative in Hebrew, in the Israeli press. Adverts also appeared throughout the international media, including this newspaper. Many Israelis welcomed it as a step in the right direction. Yet before the world shouts "eureka", it is important to realise that the Arab initiative cannot be seen as a "take it or leave it" offer. It cannot serve as a diktat, or replace the need for bilateral negotiations, on both the Palestinian and Syrian tracks. The plan is an interesting starting point for negotiations, but the international community should be under no illusions. Elements of the text are a cause for grave concern as regards the survivability of the state of Israel. The demand that Palestinians should be able to relocate to areas inside the borders of the state of Israel jeopardises Israel's very existence. Most Israelis understand and support the creat...

As an Orthodox Jew, I am very worried about the tainted Irish pork. I mean, these poor animals come in for such a bad press from our people and now this? I'm considering starting a new focus group with the acronym of "JFJP" or "Jews for Justice for Pork". After all, if some of our misguided brethren feel the need to front the other JFJP (Jews for Justice for Palestinians) group to stand up for those poor, peace-loving Palestinians, why shouldn't the Ireland's pigs get our unified support too?

I would very much like to post a blog which describes my anger at the Government and Police's despicable actions towards Damian Green. I would have had no hesitation in doing so about ten years ago. These days, I'm too frightened to voice my opinions about the Government. Welcome to Britain circa 2008.

I've just been reading about the funeral of Chabad Rabbi Gavi Holtzberg and his wife in Israel. It turns out that the couple's oldest son died of Tay Sachs, a terrible terrible genetic disease that affects Jewish kids in particular, whilst his middle brother is currently hospitalized by the condition. As far as I know, the baby who was rescued from Nariman House in Mumbai is not similarly afflicted. How such a tragedy can strike a family is something that I (and I suspect most other people) find hard to rationalise. I only hope and pray that both the parents and their child will find the eternal peace in Heaven that so eluded them down here in this cesspit we call "life". You can read more about the funeral here .

I sometimes wonder whether I am being either extraordinarily selfish or just petty when I think about all the issues in my own life that aren't working out. Looking at the kind of devastation caused in Mumbai , I really do feel that my problems aren't worth too much. But the problem with taking this approach is that eventually, as callous as it sounds, the attacks in Mumbai will distance themselves from our psyche, in the same way September 11 th and July 7 th have done. I don't mean this with any kind of disrespect, but time has an asynchronous way of cushioning the raw ferocity of emotions that we all feel when we hear about these atrocities and eventually, we find ourselves looking at the events if not with less horror, than with the anaesthetically numbed memory, if you can call it that. I say this because in a week or two, when events will have taken over our minds, my problems - the ones I felt guilty about considering in the first paragraph - will still be there,...

By Rabbi Shmuley Boteach All terrorism is monstrous, but the murder of Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg by ‘religious Islamic extremists’ stands out for its unspeakable infamy. The deliberate targeting of a small Jewish center and its married young directors, whose only purpose it was to provide for the religious needs of a community and feed travelers, proves that those who perpetrated this crime are bereft not only of even a hint of humanity, but every shred of faith as well. The world’s most aggressive atheists are more religious than these spiritual charlatans and pious frauds. When Osama bin Laden, whose beard masks the face of the ultimate religious hypocrite, attacked the World Trade Center in New York, the target was purportedly chosen as the very symbol of American materialism and excess. But what could these ‘religious’ people have been thinking in exterminating a twenty-something couple with two babies who moved from the world’s richest country to India to p...

I can't believe how many people have wished me happy birthday. The advent of Facebook has really hit home today as I looked through the good wishes, which I was really touched by. My daughters have been phenomenal . Dassi made me the most beautiful card, replete with "41" badge and I was given two gorgeous cards created by Tali and Michal/ Shira . I love being a daddy!!! Dana managed to get me the most amazing gift...and one that I will be eternally grateful for - a microwave oven. I say this because I've been begging her to get one since the day we got married (even before) but she steadfastly refused, preferring the good old methods (i.e oven) to heat food up. This evening, instead of having to wait an agonising 25 minutes for my meal, my ravenous appetite was satisfied in less than 300 seconds, thanks to my new birthday present. I can think of no finer or more appreciated gift for a man than a way to get him receiving his hot dinner quickly. On behalf of my end...

I am now 41 years old and 9 minutes. I had better get to bed before I turn 42.

By Paul Cashmere The highlight if my media career was definitely having the chance to interview George Harrison. George was funny, informative and up for a chat. Today marks the 7th anniversary of the death of what we all called `the Quiet Beatle`. Here is a a candid chat with Beatle George. Paul Cashmere: I'm going to start off by talking about movies. I don't know how many times I've see "Monty Python's Life of Brian," in which you have a cameo. I've searched for your part, even on freeze frame. The problem with that movie is that everyone in it looks like George Harrison. Put me out of my misery. Where are you in it? George Harrison: Well if you're looking for me, then everybody's going to look like that. There's just one little shot, it's probably about 12 frames. Do you know the scene where he comes out of the room and there's crowds of people in the house and John Cleese is there saying, "Those people with gifts form a qu...

I was a teaching a non computing class earlier this week. The students and I strayed away from the main topic of conversation (as one does in these types of lessons) and for some reason started talking about Judaism. I can't remember what the catalyst for the conversation was, but I won't forget some of the comments for a long time to come. Some of these kids seemed convinced that all Jews are rich (nothing new there then) and that the reason why Charedim/Hasidim wear large hats is solely because they need somewhere to hide their money under. This is obviously an idea that they will have heard from home or in the media or in their place of worship. I ridiculed this suggestion by taking my kipah (skullcap) off in front of them and shaking it a few times to see if any money would come out. I then put my hands into my hair, ruffled it a little and waited for the notes to fall out. Unfortunately, I wasn't successful. My hair was definitely moneyless. The kids then replied that ...

Those sickening images we are seeing from Mumbai, wending their way through the global telecommunications that we all plug into begs one single question. Why? Why is one human being spending his/her time planning the murder of countless others? Why is this person not working in a decent job, trying to make a living, just like the rest of us? I went to school today, interacted with the kids, showed them that I gave a damn about their futures and came home. This evening, I sat there for three hours, planning lessons, wondering how I would teach them tomorrow and how they might react to my methods. At no single moment did I think about how I could harm them. It didn't occur to me that maybe tomorrow, Heaven forbid, someone would be sitting in a room planning to kill either them, their friends, relatives or neighbours. For me, the amount of time I spend awake is given over to fanning a different sort of fire, the kind that encourages young adults to go out there and make their existenc...

I don't know what my poor little blue Fiesta ever did to hurt anyone because for some reason, it seems to be a constant target for other people's anger/poor driving/aggression. A few months after I got it, some shitty little teenagers decided to go joy-riding down my street and inflicted on my little Fordy what would turn out to be one of the first in a long line of serious attacks. If that weren't enough, another little teenage angel ran his key along the bonnet and driver's side, adding more hurt and shame to this long suffering automobile. I was definitely starting to worry about leaving my Fordy alone in a street or school car park. I really felt her pain (but not enough to shell out money to relieve it). Then, I get to my new school and someone backs into Fordy - again in the car park. If that weren't enough, another little darling took out his anger and smashed the driver's mirror, but a few yards away from the previous misdemeanour. Now you'd think...

I shouldn't find this funny, but I can't help myself. CNN) -- Things didn't go quite according to plan for astronaut Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper during her spacewalk outside the International Space Station on Tuesday. Astronaut Heide Stefanyshyn-Piper maneuvers by the tail of the docked space shuttle Endeavour. First, a grease gun inside her tool bag leaked, coating everything inside with a film of lubricant. While she was trying to clean it up in the absence of gravity, the whole bag floated away. Stefanyshyn-Piper and Steve Bowen were outside the space station on the scheduled six-hour spacewalk, ...

I had a frightening thought this evening. Dana came home with some photos of our, taken when they were babies. Whilst looking through the photos, it occurred to me as to how our little have changed over what is a very short amount of time in my life. Only 8 years ago, my eldest daughter was just three; Talia was 1, Michal was just about something and Shira....well, she wasn't! We live with the same people day in and day out and we don't realise how they've changed over time. A chance look at some photographs suddenly brings it all home. Ten years ago, I remember what was happening to me. The same can't be said about 80% of the people living in this house!

SOCIALISM You have 2 cows. You give one to your neighbour. COMMUNISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and gives you some milk. FASCISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and sells you some milk. NAZISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both and shoots you. BUREAUCRATISM You have 2 cows. The State takes both, shoots one, milks the other, and then throws the milk away... TRADITIONAL CAPITALISM You have two cows. You sell one and buy a bull. Your herd multiplies, and the economy grows. You sell them and retire on the income. SURREALISM You have two female giraffes. The government requires you to take harmonica lessons AN AMERICAN CORPORATION You have two cows. You sell one, and force the other to produce the milk of four cows. Later, you hire a consultant to analyse why the cow has dropped dead. ENRON VENTURE CAPITALISM You have two cows. You sell three of them to your publicly listed company, using letters of credit opened by your brother-in-law at the bank, the...

I was delighted to read that Nir Barkat , the secular candidate in the Jerusalem mayoralty race, won the election. He proved that you don't have to be Orthodox or indeed Charedi to love the focal point of our nation. Having been to Jerusalem more times than I can remember, I have seen with deep alacrity the taking over of the city by the Ultra Orthodox Jews - with the result being the flight of moderates like myself and our secular brethren from the city we so adore. I didn't like Teddy Kolleck but respected what he had done over the years. I didn't like Olmert (I still don't) as Mayor and was indifferent to the incumbent, although apparently, he was far less bothersome that I'd imagined. Nir Barkat is a "new" face with a young, fresh approach - a man whom I believe can do a lot of good in the city, if only to re-balance the population and make the city attractive to non- Charedis . We have enough of a problem with the Arabs trying to divide our city...

I built my house from barley rice Green pepper walls and water ice Tables of paper wood, windows of light And everything emptying into White . Those lines from the beautiful Cat Stevens song really describe what has been happened at our abode over the last fortnight. When we moved here, nearly a decade ago, we were faced with pepper(mint) green lined walls that frankly looked vile. We lived with these because re-papering/re-painting the walls was out of the question, not least because my DIY skills aren't what they used to be - i.e. they were never too hot and now...they're abysmal - and money wasn't exactly flowing. Fast forward to the last two weeks and, as Dylan puts it, things have changed. Our walls are now a gleaming shade of white and the house has been transformed into a place that I am happy to show off to friends - as well as to come home to after a day at work. The chief architect behind this endeavour was my good lady who found a fantastic decorator, the ...

As I stood in front of my students at 11.00 a.m. observing the two minute silence, I tried to imagine what it must have been like going over the edge of the trench into the barrage of bullets and bombs. What could these poor young men have been thinking, running towards their inevitable deaths? What would have happened if WW1 hadn't taken place? Would the computer I am typing this on exist if Archduke Ferdinand had lived? It is so easy to pass these moments by. You don't have to stand for two minutes channelling your thoughts. You could just ignore the moment and get on with your life in the same manner. No-one forces you to watch the parades, wear the poppies or mourn the dead. Then again, no-one forced people to vote for Hitler. In life, you can be a passive observer and it's probably makes life simpler if you are, but then, what exactly will you have achieved by the time your flame blows itself out? I told my Year 8's that standing there silently for those two minut...