More than 450 Jewish creatives, executives and Hollywood professionals have signed an open letter denouncing Jonathan Glazer’s “The Zone of Interest” Oscar speech.

Posted on March 17, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

VARIETY
Over 450 Jewish Creatives and Professionals Denounce Jonathan Glazer’s ‘Zone of Interest’ Oscars Speech in Open Letter
Tatiana Siegel
March 18, 2024

…The list of co-signees provided to Variety Monday morning covers a broad swath of the industry including actors (Debra Messing, Tovah Feldshuh), executives (Gary Barber, Gail Berman), creators (Amy Sherman-Palladino), directors (Eli Roth, Rod Lurie), producers (Lawrence Bender, Amy Pascal, Hawk Koch, Sherry Lansing) and representatives (UTA’s Jake Fenton, Gersh’s Jeffrey Greenberg, attorney Craig Emmanuel)…The group’s statement says: “We refute our Jewishness being hijacked for the purpose of drawing a moral equivalence between a Nazi regime that sought to exterminate a race of people, and an Israeli nation that seeks to avert its own extermination.”….the statement adds, “The use of words like ‘occupation’ to describe an indigenous Jewish people defending a homeland that dates back thousands of years, and has been recognized as a state by the United Nations, distorts history. It gives credence to the modern blood libel that fuels a growing anti-Jewish hatred around the world, in the United States, and in Hollywood.” READ MORE

If you’re a Jewish Hollywood professional, click here to sign the letter

Posted in Israel & Middle East | 1 Comment

“The belief that Israel is built on stolen Arab land has become orthodoxy among the anti-Israel movement. It is dangerous fiction in need of correction”

Posted on March 17, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

MORAL CLARITY
The Desperate Lies of ‘No Peace on Stolen Land’
Nachum Kaplan
March 12, 2024

“No peace on stolen land” is a battle cry at many pro-Palestinian rallies. The stolen land narrative is a powerful lie designed to delegitimize Israel. It has made its way into media, academia, and policy-making discourse. It is a lie that makes the impossible task of correcting something that never happened a requirement for peace. How Israel was created is well documented, but the propaganda has been so effective that few people know it. Many useful idiots for the Islamist Hamas murder machine refuse to learn the history because it undermines their worldview, in what is surely some kind of derangement. READ MORE

Posted in Islam, Israel & Middle East, Jewish, Politics | 1 Comment

Phillips: The US is impervious to the argument that the PA, no less than Hamas, would turn Gaza once again into a terror state

Posted on March 17, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

JNS
Palestinian Authority police officers embroiled in terror
Akiva Van Koningsveld
March 15, 2024

Almost 80 members of the U.S.-trained and armed Palestinian Authority security forces have been implicated in acts of terrorism against Israeli civilians and military personnel in the past three years alone, according to research published by the Jerusalem-based Regavim Movement think tank on Friday. The report, titled Officers by Day, Terrorists by Night provides a detailed account of dozens of cases in which P.A. police officers “turned their Western-supplied guns against the State of Israel,” Regavim said. Regavim’s research primarily relies on official “martyrdom proclamations” released by the P.A.’s ruling Fatah faction and Ramallah’s security organs. The study focuses exclusively on P.A. employees with terror links and does not include countless attacks perpetrated by Fatah members. READ MORE

MELANIE PHILLIPS BLOG: The Palestinian Terrorist Authority The Bidenites close their eyes to the copious evidence of PA incitement and rejectionism. They dismiss the huge salaries the PA pays to terrorists incarcerated in Israeli prisons and to the families of terrorists who have been killed. They ignore the survey published 100 days after the outbreak of the Gaza war which revealed that around 82 per cent of Palestinian Arabs in Judea and Samaria support the October 7 pogrom, and that support for Hamas among the Arabs in Judea and Samaria rose from 12 per cent in September 2023 to 44 per cent in November-December 2023.

Posted in Islam, Israel & Middle East | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

124 family members of Israelis murdered on October 7 demand more than a billion shekels from the Palestinian Authority and terrorist organizations in Gaza as reparations and to drain them of resources

Posted on March 16, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

YNET
Oct. 7 victims’ families sue Palestinian Authority and Hamas: ‘They will pay for their actions
Itamar Eichner
March 11, 2024

…”The economic war against the terrorists is the only way to defeat them and prevent the next murder; soon they will pay dearly for their actions,” said Morris Schneider, a plaintiff in the lawsuit, who is the brother of the late Margit Silberman and uncle of Shiri Bibas, who is still being held captive with her two children in Gaza. Her husband, Yarden is also a Hamas hostage. According to the lawsuit: “The Palestinian Authority funds the Gaza Strip, including the Hamas Government directly, by investing in civil infrastructure, salaries for public employees and officials, and payment of salaries to prisoners and family members of shahids (martyrs) from the terrorist organization.” In this first lawsuit filed against the Palestinian Authority since the outbreak of the war, the family members are demanding compensation of 100 million shekels per plaintiff. READ MORE

Posted in Islam, Israel & Middle East, Politics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Highland Park small town politics sees Jeff Hoobler, co-owner of Ravinia Brewing Company, being forced off City Council

Posted on March 15, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

CHICAGO TRIBUNE
Highland Park councilman announces resignation date due to liquor license dispute; open to staying ‘if the legislation changes’
Chloe Hills
March 19, 2024

Highland Park City Councilman Jeff Hoobler submitted his letter of resignation from the council Monday, just over a month after city staff and elected officials learned of a city law that bars elected officials from holding liquor licenses, an oversight that compromised his position on the council…Elected in April 2023, Hoobler was the top vote-getter, despite being the only candidate not publicly endorsed by Mayor Nancy Rotering…An opportunity to amend the Prohibition-era law was before the council in February, but Rotering and council members Anthony Blumberg and Kim Stone rejected the proposal. Three other council members supported the amendment, and wanted to swiftly correct the city error. READ MORE

THE RECORD NORTH SHORE Highland Park Councilmember Jeff Hoobler says he will resign amid liquor-license controversy During that meeting, Councilmember Annette Lidewar proposed a motion to get rid of the clause, but Mayor Nancy Rotering and Councilmembers Tony Blumberg and Kim Stone voted against the measure and it failed. The proposed change would have allowed Hoobler to hold a license and remain on the council…The council may in April take another vote to amend the liquor-license code. Hoobler’s resignation would go into effective following that meeting.

Join other concerned Highland Parkers who believe ALL local business people should be allowed to serve on the HP City Council.

To show your support for Jeff Hoobler, sign this “Open Letter from HP Restaurants to Mayor Nancy Rotering & the HP City Council” written by local restaurant owners (you don’t need to own a restaurant to sign).

Posted in Politics | Tagged , | Leave a comment

About 32,000 out of 60,000 officially evacuated residents have returned to towns near Gaza, says an official working on an NIS 18 billion regional investment plan

Posted on March 14, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

TIMES OF ISRAEL
Over half of southern evacuees back home as officials prep massive rehabilitation push
Canaan Lidor and Ariella Oldfield
March 14, 2024

More than half of the evacuees from Israel’s south have returned to their homes, according to a government official working on rehabilitating the region. According to the official, 32,000 out of the 60,000 people who were evacuated by the government from locales within a 7-kilometer radius (4.3 miles) of the border with Gaza are back in their communities. The official spoke to The Times of Israel on Thursday on condition of anonymity, citing the fact that he is not part of the government ministries authorized to speak to the media about rehabilitation. Another 22,000 southern evacuees are living in about 180 government-subsidized hotels across the country. The rest are renting homes and receiving a subsidy of about NIS 6,000 ($1,650) per month per adult. READ MORE

Posted in Israel & Middle East | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Because Senator Schumer knows what’s best for Israel, not her voters, suggesting Netanyahu should be voted out of office

Posted on March 14, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

AXIOS
Schumer’s anti-Netanyahu speech stuns Israel
Barak Ravid
March 14, 2024

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s (D-N.Y.) speech calling for a new government in Israel landed like an earthquake Thursday, delivering a huge shock to the already tense U.S.-Israel relationship. In addition to being the most senior Jewish elected official in the country, Schumer has had one of the longest and closest relationships with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of any U.S. politician. Schumer’s speech stunned officials and observers in both Washington and Jerusalem because he has been — and still is — the Democratic Party’s most avid supporter of Israel in decades. His harsh remarks about Netanyahu create more political space for other Democratic members of Congress to publicly voice their criticism of the Israeli government amid the ongoing war in Gaza. READ MORE

JNS Netanyahu, Israeli right, Hamas, Abbas ‘the four obstacles to peace,’ Schumer says Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) identified Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and “radical right-wing Israelis,” alongside Hamas and Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas, as “the four obstacles to peace” between Israelis and Palestinians. In a Thursday speech on the Senate floor that Schumer described as a “major address” on a possible two-state solution, the senator labeled Israeli cabinet members “bigots” and “extremists” and called for new elections in Israel…He implied that Washington should condition or cut off aid to Israel unless a new government is formed.

POLITICO Schumer calls for new government, ‘course corrections’ by Israel The Senate majority leader delivered his remarks in a floor speech designed to carry extra weight as the highest-ranking Jewish official in U.S. government. Schumer said if the Netanyahu government remains in power the U.S. would need to play “a more active role in shaping Israeli policy by using our leverage to change the present course” and that President Joe Biden’s administration should ensure U.S. assistance to Israel is “aligned with our broader goal of achieving long-term peace and stability in the region.”

Posted in Israel & Middle East, Jewish, Politics | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Mr Biden imagines Palestinians are eager for peace and Israel’s government is at odds with its people

Posted on March 14, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

WALL STREET JOURNAL
Biden’s Middle East Is a Fantasy World
Amit Segal
May 13, 2024

When Joe Biden and officials in his administration talk about the Israelis and the Palestinians, they describe two peoples that don’t exist in reality. According to the White House, the Palestinians aspire to peace, reject Hamas and are ready to make painful concessions. A week after Hamas attacked Israel, Mr. Biden said in an interview on “60 Minutes”: “Hamas and the extreme elements of Hamas don’t represent all the Palestinian people.” National security adviser Jake Sullivan said: “The many, many Palestinians who have had nothing to do with the brutal terrorist organization Hamas—the vast majority of the population of Gaza—they deserve dignity. They deserve safety and security.” In reality, according to a November survey by Arab World for Research and Development, affiliated with Ramallah-based Birzeit University, 59% of Palestinians “extremely support” the Oct. 7 massacre, and another 16% “somewhat support” it. READ MORE

NATIONAL REVIEW Editorial Board: Biden Is Failing the Israel Test At the same time Biden is sending out these signals on aid to Israel, he has taken the risky move of ordering the U.S. military to build a pier off the coast of Gaza for delivering humanitarian aid, thus putting hundreds of American troops within a few miles of an Iranian proxy group. When asked about the risk of Hamas firing on American troops, Air Force Major General Pat Ryder, the Pentagon press secretary, said, “I mean, that’s certainly a risk, again, but if Hamas truly does care about the Palestinian people, then again, one would hope that this international mission to deliver aid to people who need it would be able to happen unhindered.” Forgive us for not being too comforted by the idea that the Biden administration is risking the lives of American service members on the hope that Hamas cares about the well-being of civilians.

WASHINGTON TIMES Clifford May: State of the world more threatening than Biden understands He acknowledged that “Israel has a right to go after Hamas.” But going after Hamas is not the same as defeating Hamas. To leave Hamas with military and governing capabilities would mean capitulating to Hamas, as Mr. Biden capitulated to the Taliban. Americans were able to withdraw from Afghanistan. Israelis have nowhere to go. For them, this is an existential war. Some of those calling for Israel to cease firing don’t understand that. Others understand it only too wel… [Biden] suggested that Israel is not doing all it can to spare non-combatants when, in fact, Israel is doing more than any nation at war has ever done. 

Posted in Islam, Israel & Middle East, Jewish, Politics | Tagged | Leave a comment

What if Michael Rapaport hosted the Oscars

Posted on March 12, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

FREE BEACON
I Refute His Oscar
John Podhoretz
March 11, 2024

…We just needed to wait until March 10, 2024, when uneducated but talented morons like Billie Eilish, who can’t decide whether she’s gay or straight or a vegan or a meat eater and sings like she’s attached to an oxygen tank, went to the Oscars bearing buttons expressing their support for a “ceasefire” in an area Billie couldn’t find on a map, if she’s ever seen a map. The design of said button, by the way, deliberately evokes a Palestinian terrorist who held up his blood-drenched hands after massacring two IDF reservists in Ramallah nearly 25 years ago…Not to mention you can refute your Jewishness all you like, [Jonathan] Glazer, but if a terrorist arrived at a Golders Green synagogue where your nephew was becoming bar mitzvah and decided to bomb the place, you’d be as dead as you would have been had you not “refuted” it.  READ MORE

NEW YORK POST You’ll be shocked at the true meaning of the pin worn by Billie Eilish and Mark Ruffalo The Hollywood left loves a good, old-fashioned Jew-lynching: Just ask Mark Ruffalo, Billie Eilish and Ava DuVernay.

Posted in Israel & Middle East, Jewish, Politics | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Memo to America: “A free society—including our own—is only as strong as the citizens willing to defend it”

Posted on March 12, 2024 by ArchitectGuy

FREE PRESS
The Holiday from History Is Over
Bari Weiss
March 12, 2024

…Many have never heard the name Cincinnatus in Israel, where the Romans are remembered more as the empire that destroyed the Second Jewish Temple in Jerusalem in the year 70, slaughtered and sold its inhabitants, and renamed the land Syria Palestina. But the Jewish people—who long outlived that empire and reconstituted the Jewish national home in the land the Romans had once conquered—are also democratic heirs to Cincinnatus.  On the morning of October 7, ordinary Israelis left their offices, closed their laptops, and abandoned their fields to pick up weapons, in many cases without waiting for instructions from the state or its army.  On that black morning, and in the weeks and months since, these men and women have displayed the kind of heroism most thought belonged to the mythic past, or the generation of 1948, when the armies of five invading Arab nations turned every kibbutz and moshav, and every town and village, into a battlefield. READ MORE

Posted in Israel & Middle East, Jewish, Politics | Leave a comment