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January 07, 2009
The Horrors That Do Not Count
Seraphic Secret will be updating all day—as our writing schedule permits. So just keep scrolling down
Yesterday, in the Congo, 100 people were slaughtered in Africa's longest running civil war. Each month 50,000 people are murdered in Congo by the various militias.
Where are the international protests?
Starvation in Zimbabwe is rampant, deliberately caused by the tyrant Robert Mugabe.
Where are the international protests?
In Mumbai, India, Islamist terrorists from the Islamic state of Pakistan, murdered scores of civilians, tortured, sexually humiliated and then murdered the Jews of the Chabad House.
Where were the international protests?
This past week in Iraq over 100 civilians were murdered by Arab Muslim homicide bombers, a group of shieks in Yusufiya, and women and children praying at a Shiite shrine.
Where is the outrage in the Arab Muslim world?
Last week, Hamas in Gaza murdered scores of men—they were called collaborators, but that's short-hand for any personal grudge—tortured, shot and their bodies left to rot in the streets.
Last week, Egypt tried to send ambulances and doctors into Gaza. Hamas blocked entry at the Gaza-Egyptian border. Next thing you know the world media ran video of crowded Gaza hospitals without mentioning the medical aid that Hamas callously turned back.
Hamas fires mortars from the UN school, and yet the world media blames Israel for subsequent deaths.
Israel made over 90,000 phone calls to the civilians in Gaza warning of impending attacks so they could seek shelter. But Hamas took advantage of these phone calls to use the civilians as human shields.
The international media are mouthpieces for Hamas.
And far too many believe that any methods used against Israel are legitimate for they are pathological Jew-haters disguised as “mere anti-Zionists.”
It is right and proper that Israel has banned these terrorist enablers from Gaza and from the battlefield. Israel finally understands that truth is not a value held in esteem by the world media. Israel finally understands that a sort of post-modern morality grips the western media and the first victims of this broken morality are the Jewish people, the oldest, most reliable scapegoat in the world.
Once, Jews were despised because we did not have a country of our own. Now, we are despised for having a country. Moral inversion at its most cynical.
The violent and ugly protests across the globe in support of Hamas, a frankly Jew-hating and genocidal terrorist organization, has two goals: to make Jew-hatred as acceptable in the West as it is in the Muslim world. And to bring about a cease fire in Gaza as quickly as possible because Hamas are rapidly collapsing on the battlefield.
Like all Arab Muslim terrorists, They're only good when it comes to killing women and children.
Israel's war of defense against Hamas should have a single goal: to destroy Hamas, and bring about their complete and unconditional surrender. Only then will the world understand that those who spill Jewish blood will pay an enormous price.
Okey-dokey, time for a morale booster:
BB says: “Take that you terrorist dogs!”
11:06 am PST
The IDF dropped leaflets along parts of the Philadelphi corridor (see map at left) this evening urging residents to flee by 8:00 pm. The leaflets may indicate where the IDF intends to strike next.
Full story at Israel Matzav.
11:12 am PST From The Muqata, this dead-on spoof of the NY Times:
11:16 am PST Continuing their fine work, my pals Aussie Dave and Jameel live-blog the war. Riveting.
11:26 am PST Good grief, the evil Jooz have murdered Assud The Jew-eating Bunny.
11:34 am PST Caroline Glick and Brigadier General Yossi Kupperwasser discuss the the war in Gaza at Pajamas TV. Um, I hate to come across as superficial and totally Hollywood but Caroline and Yossi should, y'know, get, as we say in la-la land, “camera-ready.” Image counts just as much as message.
11:51 am PST Camera-ready as in, Veronica Lake:
11:54 am PST Or Dietrich:
11:56 am PST How about Ava Gardner?
12:06 pm PST Bibi Netanyahu says Militant Islam Threatens Us All.
Imagine a siren that gives you 30 seconds to find shelter before a Kassam rocket falls from the sky and explodes, spraying its lethal shrapnel in all directions. Now imagine this happens day after day, month after month, year after year.
If you can imagine that, you can begin to understand the terror to which hundreds of thousands of Israelis have been subjected. Three years ago Israel withdrew from every square inch of Gaza. And since that withdrawal, our civilians have been targeted by more than 6,000 rockets and mortars fired from Gaza. In the face of this relentless bombardment, Israel has acted with a restraint that other countries, faced with a similar threat, would find hard to fathom. Israel's government has finally decided to respond.
For this action to succeed, we must first have moral clarity. There is no moral equivalence between Israel, a democracy which seeks peace and targets the terrorists, and Hamas, an Iranian-backed terror organization that seeks Israel's destruction and targets the innocent.
Full article in The Wall Street Journal.
12:21 pm PST E-mails pouring in castigating yours truly for exclusively focusing on women and the importance of image-management. Okaaaaaay. Here's The King, Clark Gable, camera ready.
12: 26 pm PST The great Jimmy Stewart:
12:28 am PST And let's not forget Admiral John Ford:
12: 44 am PST Want to show IDF troops that you love and support them? Sure you do. Send them a steaming hot pizza! Believe me, troops, no matter where they are stationed need to know that people—even complete strangers—are thinking of them.
1:10 pm PST Okay, here's the deal: for every pizza sent by a Seraphic Secret reader we will endeavor to post the Hollywood picture of your choice. This one is for our good friend Dr. Carol.
2: 24 pm PST A superb opinion piece that articulates our thoughts perfectly:
On the political front, it is high time to acknowledge the failure of the fantasy that the Palestinians are legitimate actors worthy of statehood and its privileges. Contrary to the prevailing elite view, legitimacy is not conferred by such facile exercises as the holding of popular elections — though such exercises are not without consequences, which we will come to momentarily. There are certain minimal requirements for statehood, not least of which is accepting the right of one’s sovereign neighbor to exist.
For the complete article, please click here. H/T Treppenwitz.
2: 41 pm PST Jack, the blogger who never sleeps, is up and live with his Gaza War Update 11.5.
3:13 pm PST I need a break. Time for a totally random and nutty Hollywood anecdote.
Corinne Griffith in The Divine Lady
Corinne Griffith was not the best actress of Hollywood's silent era, but she was one of the most beautiful—the camera loved her—and she was featured in numerous starring roles. Her best performance was in The Divine Lady, 1929, a powerful film that tells the story of Lord Nelson and Lady Hamilton. Sadly, the film was released just as sound triumphed in Hollywood. The Divine Lady was honored with an Academy Award for Directing and Griffith was nominated for her performance. But the film was quickly forgotten. Griffith's career nose-dived in the sound era.
Griffith was married four times times. Her last marriage was in 1965 when she married a singer-realtor—very L.A.—named Dan Scholl, 45-years old. Griffith and Scholl separated after six weeks. The divorce was incredibly ugly. Scholl claimed that Griffith tricked him by claiming that she was 51-years old when she was really 71. Hey, men are not too swift when it comes to women's ages, right?
In court, Griffith, under oath, announced: “I don't give my age because it is part of my religion [Christian Science] not to.”
Then she denied that she was Corinne Griffith and claimed that she was Griffith's younger sister and stand-in, and had been since the 1930's when the real Corinne Griffith died in Mexico.
Silent stars Betty Blythe and Claire Windsor, were sworn in and both said that the Corinne Griffith in the courtroom was the same Corinne Griffith they knew in the 1920's.
Corinne Griffith was not good with men, but she was great with money. She invested all her earnings in Los Angeles real estate. The only money she ever gave away was $10,000 to the campaign of Governor George Wallace, in 1972.
At Griffith's death in 1979, her estate was valued at $150 million.
3:38 pm PST From the great Debbie Schlussel, Krysallnacht: Another Synagogue Attacked. H/T Lance
3:47 pm PST Once the Nazi Party seized power the very first German citizens to sign on to the Jew-hating program were professionals, university academics, scientists, and physicians. Time has done nothing to temper the utter stupidity of a major portion of the academic left. And yes, the Nazis were leftist, The German National Socialist Party. So here we go again, Jew-hating academics in Ontario Canada. H/T Dr. Carol.
4:02 pm PST It's called Taking Chance, from HBO, and it looks promising. H/T John Noonan.
5:11 pm PST The IDF continues operations against terrorist tunnels.
5:45 pm PST My list of the Ten Best Movies (I Screened) in 2008 has been published in Big Hollywood.
6:58 pm PST Videos demonstrating how Hamas uses civilians as human shields. Plus some nice precision IAF hits on the terrorists.
7:16 pm PST The next time someone tells you that Hamas supports social and welfare programs for the residents of Gaza, tell them that they are gold-plated idiots for believing such tales. Hamas are murderous thugs who hide behind children and steal the humanitarian aid that is shoveled into Gaza.
Other civilian complaints state that Hamas gunmen pull children along with them "by the ears" from place to place, fearing that if they don't have a child with them they will be fair game to the IDF. Others hide in civilian homes and stairwells, UNRWA ambulances, and mosques.
In other reported cases Hamas gunmen hold civilians hostage in alleyways in order to provide themselves with a living barricade to ward off IDF forces. Reports somewhat more difficult to verify say the group's men shot Fatah operatives in the feet to make sure the latter would not attempt a coup.
Full story here.
Say goodnight, BB.
Posted by Robert J. Avrech at January 7, 2009 09:13 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.
When Israel pulled out of Gaza the Palestinians had a wondrous opportunity to establish a civilized state. Israel, without Hamas agreeing to Israel's right to exist, was willing to support a peaceful neighbor on it's border.
But when the economic infrastructure were immediately destroyed, when synagogues were destroyed and the people basically acted like schoolyard punks and start launching rockets into Sderot, the world should not reward their actions by calling Israel the criminal.
There are dozens of places around the world where countries commit criminal acts against their citizens. Russia is certainly the Goliath against Chechnya. Mugabe certainly has the power to kill as many as he wants in Zimbabwe.
Please G_d, give the politicians in Israel the strength to not back down to the apologizers for terrorism. The members of the IDF deserve the support of those that started the battle to let them win it.
Posted by: Johnny at January 7, 2009 10:59 AM
Johnny,
Your posting is excellent - you should write a letter to any major newspaper with your sentiments - it needs to be heard!
and thanks again to Robert for your relentless and prolific efforts at getting out the truth!!
Posted by: Rachel at January 7, 2009 11:55 AM
This is a stimulating blog and I have a few comments. First of all I like the healthy disagreement on many comments threads. That's the whole meaning of freedom of speech and I am glad Robert believes in it; freedom of speech is exactly when you allow someone with whom you strongly disagree to speak up. It's good to see that both Israel-bashing and unmitigated praise of Israel are allowed to be condemned and criticized in these posts. That's the kind of disagreement, argument and debate that the United States has always stood for, and I think that is what distinguishes it more than anything else in the eyes of the world.
As for disproportionate response, Bloomberg has a point. If "disproportionate" response by Israel is going to stop Hamas once and for all and bring peace to the region, then so be it. As it stands though, I don't think it's going to; people are just not beaten into submission and if Hamas capitulates now, there will almost certainly be another Hamas in a while. However, disproportionate response may be the best and only way to buy peace and time for now, an action that frankly is the least of many possible evils that some may perceive. The way I see it now, the Middle East problem is intractable and the only way for Israel to relatively thrive is to occasionally engage in such "disproportionate" actions. To this end it's justified. I feel really sad that no matter if you disagree about whose fault it is, the Israelis as well as the Palestinians are going to have to always live in a state of conflict. The geopolitical history of the region virtually assures this fact. I see no solution to the problem except some extremely radical one, something which Israel is too decent and humanitarian to ever think about.
I personally am very pessimistic about any progress in that region for another hundred years. I have always found myself supporting no side in particular. But recently I have found myself castigating the Palestinians and asking a question repeatedly to them. Do you care for your own progress at all? Israel's existence may be occupied by this conflict to a significant extent, but at least they have made great progress in the middle of the desert in the last fifty years since their conception. Israeli scientists and economists have won Nobel Prizes, Israeli engineers and social scientists have turned Israel into a thriving, developed country. No other people in the history of the world have made so much progress in the face of such ruthless, universal and constant terror, discrimination and disapproval.
I want to say something to the Palestinians; even if we understand your grievances tell us why you have neglected the progress of your society, the emancipation of your women, the education of your children for so long? Is your hatred for Israel so vehement and all-consuming that you have forgotten what progress is? In fact I want to ask this question to all Arab countries. Conflict with Israel cannot be the sole reason for neglect of your institutions and society. Are your priorities so misplaced that you don't bother to at least make efforts to lift your society out of the Middle Ages and at least try to turn it into an oasis of progress? When the Israelis pulled out of Gaza, did you try to put aside your differences for a minute and try to create a heaven of peace and prosperity from the land that you have so bitterly fought for? Trust me, Palestinians, the world would be much more supportive if, instead of constantly making conflict with Israel your priority, you paid attention to the well-being of your people, the education of your children, the emancipation of your women. Don't you feel even a twinge of sadness that while the world looks ahead, your single-minded pursuit of Israel's defeat leaves your people, your countries and your society lamenting in backwardness, poverty and despair? Is this the world that you want to bequeath to your grandchildren? Do you want to tell your grandchildren that when they grow up what they should become is not engineers or doctors but Jihadists against Israel? Is that really all you solely care about? Is that the bedrock of your existence? If so it's a grave insult to all your future generations and their well-being.
The way I see it for now, peace in the promised land is as elusive as anything else. Whether people support Israel or the other side, whether one of them is right and the other is wrong, in the end it does not really matter because humanity always weeps, humanity always loses. We weep for the countless opportunities that the Palestinians have lost to prove to the world that they can progress even in the middle of conflict. We weep for their inability to put aside their hatred for Israel for a minute and focus on the things that really matter; education for their children, healthcare for their people, more freedom for their women. We weep for Israel, that fine land which has progressed so much and yet has been held back so much in the face of daily and relentless terror. We weep for ourselves, all of us in the world who have lost our sense of humanity and want to project human stories as 30 second television punch-lines. But most importantly, we weep for the massive loss of human life on both sides, each of which had the potential to live a prosperous life and contribute to the progress of the world. It does not get any more heart-rending than this.
Posted by: Bob at January 7, 2009 12:04 PM
There is no one prettier than Veronica Lake. She is amazing.
Posted by: Alice at January 7, 2009 12:09 PM
Rachel:
I used to write letters to the papers back in the '80s. I found out I could only get printed if I agreed with the paper (that happened about as often in my lifetime as the Cubs winning the WS) or I had to take a whacky position so they can show how crazy conservatives are.
It's more satisfying to come here or other sites where I can add to a point Robert makes or posit a view no one else has thought of. It keeps me a lot saner than trying to get an editorial board to change their mind.
Posted by: Johnny at January 7, 2009 12:34 PM
And Bob, of infinitely greater importance, that was really quite moving and beautiful. Well done.
Posted by: Alice at January 7, 2009 12:36 PM
Robert, thanks for doing such a great job gathering information and blogging it...as well as adding some handsome leading men for a morale boost for the ladies.
Posted by: Riv at January 7, 2009 12:47 PM
Robert:
Those pictures of Gable, Stewart and Ford are great reminders that Hollywood was once filled to the gills with people not ashamed to fight for our values.
But man oh man, Lake, Dietrich, and Gardner probably killed a lot of the enemy with envy and proved that the American GIs had more to fight for than any German soldier.
Posted by: Johnny at January 7, 2009 01:09 PM
I think Glick and Kuperwasser look okay. Hey, it's pajamas media. If you show up in anything more than pjs, you're already overdressed.
Posted by: kishke at January 7, 2009 01:13 PM
So if we send a pizza, do we get another pic of Clark Gable?
swoon
Posted by: DrCarol at January 7, 2009 01:57 PM
That was DEFINITELY worth the price of the pizza. Thanks!!
Posted by: DrCarol at January 7, 2009 03:44 PM
Robert...I sent pizza a few days ago and advised others to do so via my blog...some of the more popular English political blogs such as guido fawkes have done likewise and suffered rather vitriolic attacks.
Posted by: thud at January 7, 2009 03:54 PM
This post is so on target. I can scarcely stand the hypocrisy of those on left anymore on a variety of topics but particularly on Israel.
Great writing, Robert!
Deana
Posted by: Deana at January 7, 2009 05:49 PM
I just watched on YouTube (linked to from a commentator on Roger Simon's post at Big Hollywood) the CNN clip of Rick Sanchez trying to blame Israel for breaking the cease-fire. He reads news stories of the IDF killing 6 in Gaza when they blew up a tunnel that was to be used to kidnap Israeli soldiers.
Never mind the rockets from Hamas that never stopped during the cease-fire. Sanchez probably doesn't know who Gilad Shalit is and maybe why the IDF might not want Hamas to kidnap more soldiers.
CNN is full of tools. Either Sanchez is dumber than Paris Hilton's dog or he can't figure out that trying to kidnap soldiers and firing rockets is breaking the cease-fire. He reads the story and still can't figure out what Hamas did that was so bad.
The sad thing is that Sanchez does not stand out in the media.
Posted by: Johnny at January 7, 2009 07:21 PM
According to this article, Israel might be taking over the Philadelphi corridor long-term. That's very good news.
http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1231167305027&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull
Posted by: kishke at January 7, 2009 10:15 PM
I just hearad reports that rockets have been fired into Israel frmo Jordan, and have been responded too.
having a hard time confirming things, maybe will go pray.
Posted by: katherine at January 7, 2009 10:47 PM
IsraellyCool confirms rockets on northern cities.
I'm feeling rapid enough to enjoy biting necks off of CNN talking heads. Not even the slightest pretence of fairness. Only thing that cheered me was Sean Hannity had on Jeff Berrkowicz from Public Affairs making it clear how much the NYT has turned into a shill for Hamas. Apparently he kept track the whole of last year. (we could have saved him the money). Hannity brought up CNN as at least as bad.
Then Hannity said he felt it (the world wide protests) was nothing but Anti-semitism and it makes him sick. They did a brief video of a protest in Florida, with nice muslim women yelling "Jews need to go back to the ovens"
So I ordred up pizzas for the troops as well as families in Sderot & those expelled from Gaza. Now I hope I can sleep. May G-d guide and protect the beautiful soldiers fighting for Israel.
Posted by: Katherine at January 7, 2009 11:19 PM
Morale boosters- good for keeping the updates flowing. ;)
Posted by: Jack at January 7, 2009 11:58 PM
I quite agree with you. Hamas supports social welfare in the same way that Jerry Falwell did, compensated for by a lot of unseemly activities and pronunciations. Anyone who endorses these for their so-called good deeds is, as you accurately noted, a gold-plated idiot.
Posted by: Bromide at January 8, 2009 08:11 AM
I was a little shocked to hear though that UN personnel were killed by Israeli fire. Seems that war spares no one on any side.
Posted by: Quacker at January 8, 2009 09:49 AM
This super long post is a bit too much for me on a Friday morning.
Did you see my post about packing packages for soldiers? It's one of the best ways of donating for Israel, IDF etc.
http://shilohmusings.blogspot.com/2009/01/we-didnt-roll-bandages.html
Posted by: Batya at January 8, 2009 10:05 PM