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January 15, 2009
Dear World
Day 20 of The Gaza War
Seraphic Secret will update throughout the day, so just keep scrolling down.
This video says it all. Oscar worthy!
9:28 am PST Jack checks in with Gaza War Update #17.
9:37 am PST One more impressive hit from The IDF's Greatest Hits. No wonder Hamas are seeking a cease-fire. A few more days and they will all be, ahem, retired.
9:42 am PST Finally, a sane way of dealing with the U.N.
9:46 am PST Aussie Dave and The Muqata should receive medals for their invaluable live-blogging of Operation Cast Lead.
10: 29 am PST From the Children of the Diaspora to the IDF.
11:06 am PST Seven-year-old boy in very serious condition after shrapnel hit his head from Grad rocket attack in Be'er Sheva. Boy's mother shielded him with her own body as rocket hit. The boy is going into emergency neurosurgery right now at Seroka hospital. Memo to dinosaur media: where's the outrage? H/T The Muqata
11:09 am PST Jew-hatred sweeps Europe. Duh.
11:16 am PST “Hamas is misunderstood.” This wisdom from—I kid you not—The Army War College, where Strategic Collapse is in progress.
11: 26 AM PST I have no idea why PBS exists in this age of cable and satellite TV. Oh wait, so Bill Moyers can use Nazi genetic theories to hurl a blood libel at Jews. If you donate money to PBS you are a gold-plated moron.
11:33 am PST Cease fire talks, but no mention of Gilad Shalit. Criminal.
11:36 am PST My good friend Marvin Silbermintz is one of the funniest people I know. He was a staff writer for Jay Leno for over 20-years—yarmulke, beard, leaving early on Friday. Now Marvin has launched a truly funny blog, and G-d knows we need to laugh. So check out Marvin is Mad.
The Blue Thingee
I'm sitting and watching a fascinating film on TCM, Dramatic School, (1938) with Luise Rainer, Lana Turner, Genevieve Tobin, Paulette Goddard, Gale Sondergaard, Anne Rutherford, and Virginia Grey. Killer cast, huh? Confession: I've never been crazy about two-time—back to back!—Oscar winner Rainer, she always seemed a bit, uh, high-toned for my taste. But here she's playing a drama student who takes herself waaaay too seriously. Her cheekbones are sharp as a snowplow and her eyes are wide like saucers. Rainer's performance is seriously funny as she swans around spoofing self-absorbed actors. I'm really into the film when Karen calls me over, opens her palm and whoa! I'm looking at this Blue Thingee. Karen goes: “Guess what it is.” Hunh? Is this some subtle form of Psych-Ops? I stare at the Blue Thingee and oh boy, I actually get scared because if I guess wrong Karen will think I'm a complete idiot, realize that she married the wrong man, kick me out of the house and I'll end up on skid row—I'm pretty sure they don't get TCM on skid row—living in a cardboard box and telling the other winos that I used to be a big-shot Hollywood screenwriter and they'll all figure that I'm just another smelly schizo. But if I guess correctly, Karen will be suspicious and figure that somehow I'm cheating and she'll kick me out of the house—you already know my subsequent fate. So, I take a deep breath and hazard a guess. Karen's eyes go wide and lovely, just like Luise Rainer, and she goes: “How did you know?” I shrug. I have no idea. Okay, I'm not on skid row. Still hanging on to the good life. Maybe Karen figures I'm just a genius. Or not. Anyhoo. Would you like to guess what The Blue Thingee is? Answer, before I go to sleep tonight.
1:37 pm PST Stephanie Guttman, author of the The Other War, the best analysis of the media's role in the Arab war on Israel, now asks: Can We Trust the Casualty Figures?
1:59 pm PST We knew this was coming. Barack Obama makes it clear that he's going to reach out to Syria and Iran “in ways that we have not before.” Lemme guess, overnight pajama parties in the Lincoln Bedroom. That was the brilliant tactic used by Bill Clinton that was so successful with terrorist leader Yassir Arafat. Now, reaching out to the world's greatest Jew-haters might sound odd, but hey, Obama has lots of experience in that area: 20 years listening to Jeremiah Wright. I wonder at what point American Jews will, y'know, wake up.
5:43 pm PST Obama was only kidding. No need to kill Osama. This guy is just priceless. I feel so much safer.
7:56pm PST I'm in awe as Jack hammers away and sends us Gaza War Update # Chai.
BB says: “Obviously, the Blue Thingee is a make-up sponge for applying blush, moisturizer, foundation. Mazal Tov to my BFF Mata Hari.”
Posted by Robert J. Avrech at January 15, 2009 08:58 AM
Comments
Seraphic Secret is private property, that's right, it's an extension of our home, and as such, Karen and I have instituted two Seraphic Rules and we ask commentors to act respectfully.
1. No profanity.2. No Israel bashing. We debate, we discuss, we are respectful. You know what Israel bashing is. The world is full of it. Seraphic Secret is one of the few places in the world that will not tolerate this form of anti-Semitism. That's it. Break either of these rules and you will be banned.
The insanity continues.
The Queen of Jordan was on MSNBC this morning and whined about the mean Israelis killing over 1,000 people in Gaza and only a few Israeli citizens have been killed by those rockets.
No one pointed out to her majesty that the blockade could easily be broken by that little border Egypt shares with Gaza.
No one asked her majesty why Jordan doesn't want to take back the land they lost in 1967.
No one asked her about Gilad Shalit.
No one asked her what happened after Israel left Gaza and the destruction that took place.
When she complained about the settlements no one asked her why Jews are not allowed to live where they want.
It took Pat Buchanan of all people to point out that the U.S. wouldn't put up with having rockets lobbed into our country.
Zbigniew Brzezinski must be beaming with pride at his daughter.
Posted by: Johnny at January 15, 2009 09:26 AM
THIS IS BIG! Now let's get Gilad.
BC-PALESTINIANS-ISRAEL/SEYYAM@
Hamas interior minister killed in Israeli air raid@
GAZA, Jan 15 (Reuters) - An Israeli air strike killed Hamas's interior minister, Saeed Seyyam, in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, Hamas-run television said.
Seyyam had been in charge of 13,000 Hamas police and security men, many of whom are actively involved in fighting Israel.
(Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi, writing by Alistair Lyon)
Posted by: Jake at January 15, 2009 09:31 AM
Jake:
If Livni went on TV and said the IDF will not stop until they find Galid and those that kidnapped him she would probably win the election.
No cease fire should be agreed to unless Galid Shalit is returned. Search every building if they won't turn him over.
Posted by: Johnny at January 15, 2009 10:02 AM
Definitely a sane way to deal with the UN. Of course, the IBA news announcer refers to this as "what appears to be an embarrassing series of incidents for the IDF..." Dear IDF, Dear Tzipi, Ehud & Ehud: Please don't let this become the latest Kana. Don't wimp out. Dear Foreign Correspondents: News flash: Gaza is a war zone. If you stay there, you may get hurt. That is how war works. Dear UN: Please consider moving all of your offices permanently to Yarmouk, where over a hundred thousand people actually agree with you.
Posted by: rutimizrachi at January 15, 2009 10:17 AM
Mr. Poole (of PJ Media) closes with this question:At the height of World War II, would a faculty member at the Army War College have even considered attempting to defend Nazi fascism or Japanese imperialism, as War College professor Sherifa Zuhur has now done with Hamas?
The answer, of course, is that had the staff member been a Nazi or a Japanese imperialist, then yes, he would have attempted such a defense. The instructor in this case, Sherifa Zuhur, is evidently a Muslim. Should we then be surprised that he (she?) defends his terroristic brethren?
Posted by: kishke at January 15, 2009 11:48 AM
The UN is the most corrupt organization around. They let Hamas operate in their buildings in Gaza and knew they kept weapons there. Now they cry because the IDF targeted them. They are complicit in every war crime Hamas commits. Boo-friggin'-hoo if their offices are bombed.
Why does anyone pay attention to Bill Moyers? He was the guy that sat around with LBJ laughing at the illegal wiretaps on Martin Luther King and other civil rights leaders. Now he wants Bush impeached for listening in on terrorist phone calls. Bill Moyers is only qualified to work for the UN.
Posted by: Johnny at January 15, 2009 11:50 AM
...in Yarmouk, Johnny. I don't usually get caught up in these sorts of corruptions of the English language, but "boo-friggin'-hoo" actually resonates. Thank you. (I must be the mother of a soldier in Gaza.)
Posted by: rutimizrachi at January 15, 2009 12:02 PM
The Blue Thingee looks like a molded version of the Blue Bouncy Balls I spent my childhood trying to figure out how to play with.
They looked something like this (http://www.d-gel.com/english/images/360-balle-bleue.jpg) but with more of the texture shown in the picture of the Blue Thingee.
Posted by: Michal at January 15, 2009 12:52 PM
a makeup sponge?
Posted by: mata hari at January 15, 2009 12:53 PM
Looks like an earplug to me...
Posted by: malka at January 15, 2009 01:17 PM
This is a good write up on "The Gaza Riviera" - what could have been had the Palistinians not been so consumed with hatred
Posted by: Bill Brandt at January 15, 2009 01:43 PM
An earplug, of course.
Posted by: kishke at January 15, 2009 03:52 PM
The blue thingee is an eraser? The tip of a souvenir flagpole? Shabbat Shalom.
Posted by: Miranda Rose Smith at January 16, 2009 12:18 AM
Robert, your final war picture is... breathtaking!
Wow! Now I understand why those Israeli lads want to drive tanks!!!!
In the 1940's, she would have been featured in the "why we fight" stories!
Posted by: ProphetJoe at January 16, 2009 07:16 AM
You made me laugh out loud. Me and BB. I like it ;)
Posted by: mata hari at January 18, 2009 07:21 PM