Saturday, March 30, 2019


Politics – March 2019


Israel is not a state of all its citizens. According to the basic nationality law we passed, Israel is the nation state of the Jewish people – and only it.

Loving your neighbor as yourself is not a matter of right-left, Jewish-Arab, secular or religious, it is a matter of dialogue, of dialogue for peace, equality and tolerance for each other. The responsibility for such hope is on us to create a brighter future for our children.
~ Gal Gadot



The one pervading evil of democracy is the tyranny of the majority, or rather of that party, not always the majority, that succeeds, by force or fraud, in carrying elections.
~ John Dalberg-Acton
Power tends to corrupt and absolute power corrupts absolutely.
~ John Dalberg-Acton

Hatred consumes those who hate and it disintegrates society.
~Raphael Cohen-Almagor

Banana Republic: The Attorney General decides to indict the Prime Minister, and he does not resign. Guess in which country this is happening, today. Hint: This country is neither in Africa, nor in South America.
~Raphael Cohen-Almagor


Trump continues to dominate US news. American media developed an unhealthy obsession with the president. They fail to understand that their obsession only feeds the narcissist dispositions of Mr Trump. If they really truly wish to hurt him, as the majority of the American media certainly are, they need to ignore him. This is the greatest punishment a narcissist can endure.

Brexit continues to dominate the British media. The government incompetency is alarming. Hebrew proverb: One stupid person throws a stone to the river and it takes hundreds of wise people to find the stone.

Israeli media are occupied with the April elections and with Mr Netanyahu multiple corruption affairs. Suddenly we realise that all affairs are tiny compared to the submarine affair. To increase his chances, Netanyahu tries to divert attention to other issues and he mobilise friends for help. On March 21, 2019, President Trump has overturned decades of US policy by saying it is time to recognise Israel's sovereignty over the occupied Golan Heights, which it captured from Syria in 1967. A few days later, during PM Netanyahu visit to the white House, US President Trump signed a decree recognizing Israeli sovereignty over the Golan Heights. Following the meeting, Netanyahu said: “My dear friend Donald, you have demonstrated consistent and extraordinary support for Israel, in our right to defend ourselves. You are never deterred, you are always present, including today and I thank you.”  “Trump Handed Netanyahu the Golan With a Bow on Top. It's a First Step Toward Annexation” (Ha’aretz)

Hamas has the capability to fire rockets on Tel Aviv. That became clear a few weeks ago when two rockets were fired on Tel Aviv, either intentionally or by mistake. Low-level Hamas forces are believed to have been responsible for the launches. In response, the IDF hit more than 100 Hamas targets in Gaza. Nine rockets were fired toward Gaza border communities overnight and Friday morning, with six of those intercepted. No Israeli injuries are reported.

Hamas has the capability to make the lives of Israelis hell. Israel has the capability to make life in Gaza hell on earth. Will there ever come a time when both nations will attempt to create together heaven on earth?



Reflections on Last Newsletter

Vote Kachol-Lavan

71% of the Israeli-Jewish Public Thinks it Is Immoral To Control the Palestinians

42% Support Annexation

Palestinian Public Poll

Kachol-Lavan on State and Religion

Disqualification of Political Parties

Israel Ranked 8 Most Powerful Nation

Israeli Director Wins Oscar for Best Short Film

US Military Deployed THAAD in Israel

Google Acquires Alooma

Sheba Medical Center Among World’s 10th best Hospitals 

Another Israeli Exit: Nvidia to buy Israel's Mellanox for $6.8 billion in data center push

Jerusalem Venture Partners $220 Million Startup Fund

Brexit

Corbyn

My New Article - Raphael Cohen-Almagor and Mohammed S. Wattad, “The Legal Status of Israeli-Arabs/Palestinians”, GNLU Law & Society Review, Vol. 1 (March 2019): 1-28.

My Book Review - Naomi and Asa Kasher, Leibowitz Way (Moshav Ben Shemen: Keter, 2018, Hebrew), Israel Affairs (February 2019).

Theatre – Come From Away

 

Gem of the Month – London

 

Gem of the Month – Symphonic Masters

 

Gem of the Month – Danzón No. 2 by Marquez


Monthly Poem- I Love My Gold Fish

 

Light Side - when people get bored at the airport




Reflections on Last Newsletter

Alan Share wrote:
There will only be an end to the conflict when people recognise that the rights of the Israelis and the Palestinians are not equal but different. Fair play not equality is the arbiter. The Israelis have the right to self defence. The Palestinians have the right to a decent life. At the moment neither recognises the other.


Ambassador Sir Vincent Fean asked to bring to your attention the following initiative: Towards an independent Palestinian state : a Scottish call to action
http://www.balfourproject.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/Scottish-Call-to-Action.pdf
Dr. Jacques Cory wrote from Haifa, Israel:
Dear Raphy,

Hillel the Elder was asked to give the gist of the Torah and he answered with what is perceived today also as the gist of Business Ethics, the "Golden Rule": "That which is hateful to you, do not do to your fellow. That is the whole Torah; the rest is the explanation; go and learn." And indeed every author ought to give in one sentence the gist of his books or of his Credo. This probably applies especially to me as I tend to write very long books of 600-1600 pages...

In my last book I have tackled two main issues: The crises and solutions of capitalism and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and its solution. Those issues were analyzed and substantiated in 1500 pages, but I'll try to give the gist of the problems in one sentence and illustrate them with recent developments. We have all heard of the 2019 Boeing 737 MAX groundings (link) and it appears that in this case as in many others the issue was mainly a business ethics issue.

The gist of my business ethics books, ethical credo, the crises of capitalism as well as the recent Boeing crisis is: "The main purpose of a company is not to maximize profits but to optimize the equilibrium between the interests of its stakeholders". Because if we maximize profits/valuation it is to the detriment of the workers, the customers, the ecology, the minority shareholders, the community, the country, the suppliers, the creditors, the economy and humanity.

Maximizing profits incites you to lay off employees constantly, give them the lowest salaries and benefits, delivering airplanes earlier than required in order to match the competition to the detriment of safety and the life of the passengers, dumping waste to the detriment of community, wrong minority shareholders by controlling shareholders and executives rewarded by them, pay minimum taxes even if you work in a country and let others foot the bill, bribe legally or unethically government officials and politicians, giving bonds and loans haircuts, ruin the economy, oppress humanity, destroy our planet.

If the credo of Boeing was indeed as stipulated in its code of ethics it would have postponed deliveries of the 737 MAX thus not MAXimizing its profits but achieving the right equilibrium between the interests of all its stakeholders. Nothing has apparently changed since the Ford Pinto case and the Boeing 737 case, between the 1929 Great Depression and the 2008 Great Recession, greed is the same and neo liberal maximization of profits prevails, you do to others what is hateful to you, as you know that you'll not be punished, but ultimately this conduct brings about populist and fascist regimes and ruin the economy.

The gist of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict and the political crises in general is: "Blame others for your shortcomings and failures, but preferably blame Israel and the Jews". Attached is a short video that illustrates it remarkably as the Palestinians blame Israel for all their problems and don't try to examine what were their shortcomings, why they didn't agree to the partition in 1947, in 2000 to a two-state solution - a Palestinian state in the 1967 borders and a Jewish state, to develop Gaza Strip as Singapore instead of launching rockets to Israel, blaming Israel/Jews for all their problems, as they are the "victims".

The Germans blamed the Jews for the loss of the First World War, the Hyperinflation and all their shortcomings, Modern anti-Semites in Poland and other countries blame Jews for all their problems although there are no more Jews there, the most corrupted countries in the world as you can see in the video attached blame Israel as colonialists, fascists, Nazis, War Criminals, instead of looking in the mirror and finding that their regimes are the true criminals.

In my life and my career I have constantly examined myself and my deeds and assumed that I have full responsibility even if I am not to blame and have excuses. I was responsible when a customer didn't pay because I delivered to him, if an employee made mistakes because I've hired him, if the price of my stocks declined because there was a recession. And I motivated my employees to think likewise and not to find excuses but to give solutions to the problems - how we can recover the payment from the customer, correct the mistake of the employee, and increase the price of our shares in spite of the recession.

Overcoming Problems was what the Jews did after the Holocaust, how the refugees coming to Israel from Europe and the Arab countries rehabilitated, not like the Arab refugees staying in their camps and mourning constantly of the Nakba and Naksa, what Lee Kuan Yew did bringing Singapore from Third World to First, what the Germans and the Japanese did after World War II, what the US did in the New Deal and transforming itself to a Welfare State, and not as in the neo-liberal populist regime of today blaming the refugees, China and Europe, instead of solving the problems due entirely to greed and egoism.

Finally, if we assume responsibility and find the right equilibrium between all stakeholders in the economy and in politics, we shall resolve all the problems.


Vote Kachol-Lavan

Every elections qua elections are important. The 2019 elections are of particular importance because now there is a real chance for change.

I opened with quotes from John Dalberg-Acton. It is bad for democracy to have the same party, any party, in power for a long time because power corrupts. People usually understand that, hence the democratic pendulum is usually swinging, bringing to power fresh ideas, new people, change.

Israeli democracy should not elect a person who is up to his ears in corruption affairs. I would say this about any person, notwithstanding his or her politics. If I were in Israel, I would vote Kachol-Lavan, empowering Gantz to have the ability to be called to the president to comprise the next government. He will do it.



71% of the Israeli-Jewish Public Thinks it Is Immoral To Control the Palestinians

A survey by the Van Leer Institute, in cooperation with the Citizens Accord Forum and the Shaharit Institute, revealed that 71% of the Jewish public in Israel thinks there is a moral problem with Israel's control over the Palestinians. Moreover, 78% of Israeli Jews think that control over the Palestinians in Judea and Samaria is not good for Israel. The survey, which was presented under the headline "Religious Faith, Peace and Coexistence," examined the Israeli public's stands regarding peace and the control of Israel over Palestinians in Judea and Samaria. Despite the high percentage who claim that control of the Palestinians is not good for Israel, only 12% think it should be stopped immediately, while the majority of the public (66%) thinks that there is no alternative at present.

Source: The Jerusalem Post


42% Support Annexation

Two weeks before elections, Haaretz conducted a poll showing that even proponents of the two-state solution who vote for Zionist center-left parties such as Labour, Meretz and Benny Gantz’s newly established Kahol Lavan don’t rule out at least partial annexation of the West Bank to Israel. In total, 42 percent of respondents support some form of annexation. The results also show that 20 percent of non-Jewish respondents, most of them Arab citizens of Israel, support annexation if their Palestinian neighbors are granted political rights. This is more than double the number of Jewish Israelis (9 percent) who back such a scenario.


Palestinian Public Poll

Sixty percent of Palestinians want Abbas to resign, according to a recent public opinion poll. The poll, conducted by the Palestinian Center for Policy and Survey Research, indicated a rise in support for the two-state solution, with 49% preferring that outcome, compared to 17% preferring a democratic binational state. 55% said they supported “popular nonviolent resistance” against Israel, 47% support a return to an armed intifada.

Source: The Jerusalem Post


Kachol-Lavan on State and Religion

The Lapid-Gantz alliance has published its liberal platform on matters of religion and state. If it forms the next government, the alliance has promised to recognize some form of civil marriage in Israel; to repeal the law that prohibits most stores from operating on Shabbat; to allow cities to decide whether to run buses on the Sabbath; and to legalize surrogacy for all gay couples and provide them with equal rights in adopting children.


Disqualification of Political Parties

The Israeli Supreme Court banned the Kahanist leader, Michael Ben-Ari, from running in the April 9 elections. The Court also reversed the disqualification of Arab joint party Balad-United Arab List and Ofer Cassif, a member of the mostly Arab political alliance Hadash-Ta’al. Earlier this month, the Central elections Committee disqualified the Balad-United Arab List and Cassif. The Court overturned the decision.

I have written extensively about legitimate grounds for disqualifying political lists. See, for instance, my articles

“Disqualification of Lists in Israel (1948-1984): Retrospect and Appraisal”, Law and Philosophy, Vol. 13, No. 1 (1994): 43-95.

“Disqualification of Political Parties in Israel: 1988-1996”, Emory International Law Review, Vol. 11, No. 1 (1997): 67-109.
Israel Ranked 8 Most Powerful Nation

An international survey ranked Israel as the eighth most powerful nation in the world for the third consecutive year, narrowly ahead of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The annual survey by the US News & World Report was based on the answers of more than 21,000 people from four regions. The survey ranked 80 countries on a range of issues, including power, cultural influence, economy and entrepreneurship, with the categories adding up to an overall “best countries” ranking. Israel was ranked 29th on the best countries list, up one place from the last two years, with Switzerland and Japan taking the first two slots. 



Israeli Director Wins Oscar for Best Short Film

Israeli director Guy Nattiv won the Oscar for “Live Action Short Film” with his movie "Skin" at the Academy Awards. The 20-minute movie deals with a hate crime and its ramifications from the point of view of two children, one white and the other black.


US Military Deployed THAAD in Israel

The US military deployed in Israel for the first time its most advanced missile defense system as part of an exercise with the Israeli military. The Israel Defense Forces said the United States European Command’s deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) was meant to drill dispatching the system quickly across the world and working together with Israeli air defenses against threats such as long-range ballistic missiles. “The IDF is working in cooperation with US forces in order to enhance coordination between the two militaries and to strengthen the ability to defend Israeli airspace,” it said. 


Google Acquires Alooma

Google Cloud has signed an agreement to acquire Israel-based Alooma. Alooma’s platform lets companies stream and migrate their organizational data from multiple locations and sources into one single location in the Cloud. 
https://cloud.google.com/blog/topics/inside-google-cloud/google-announces-intent-to-acquire-alooma-to-simplify-cloud-migration  https://www.calcalistech.com/ctech/articles/0,7340,L-3756732,00.html


Sheba Medical Center Among World’s 10th best Hospitals 

"Newsweek" has ranked Sheba Medical Center at Tel Hashomer near Tel Aviv as one of the world's top ten hospitals. “Newsweek” says the hospital is, "a leader in medical science and biotechnical innovation, both in the Middle East and worldwide.”

This is an amazing achievement. Sheba is in a very good company with 4 American hospitals and hospitals in Singapore, Canada, Germany, Japan and Switzerland.


Another Israeli Exit: Nvidia to buy Israel's Mellanox for $6.8 billion in data center push

U.S. chipmaker Nvidia Corp has agreed to buy Israeli chip designer Mellanox Technologies Ltd for $6.8 billion, beating rival Intel Corp in a deal that would help the firm boost its data center and supercomputer business.



Jerusalem Venture Partners $220 Million Startup Fund

Israeli venture capital fund Jerusalem Venture Partners has established a new $220 million fund to invest in early through mid-stage Israeli technologies. It will target healthcare, fintech, AI and cybersecurity, and has attracted investors from the US, France, Germany, Austria, Italy, the UK and Japan.
https://www.timesofisrael.com/israel-venture-fund-jvp-sets-up-new-fund-with-220m-in-investor-commitments/


Brexit


PM May to British Parliament: I brought a deal that is the best thing since the invention of bread.
British Parliament: Bad deal.
PM May to British Parliament: I returned from another round of negotiations with the EU and was able to improve the deal.
British Parliament: Bad deal.
PM May to British Parliament: Guess what: I was able to improve the deal, yet again. Please your support.
British Parliament: Bad deal.

So what will happen next:
Europe will move to substantially improve the deal. This is unlikely.
PM May will move or be removed. Likely. Maybe the UK needs a better negotiator.
The UK will exit the EU with no deal. Quite likely.

Brexit is the most divisive matter in UK society since the war on Iraq.


Corbyn

Show me your friends and I know who you are.

Corbyn has many friends, among them Hamas and Hezbollah. Both organisations are among the proscribed terrorist organisations. People wonder how the leader of the opposition, who wishes to become PM, associates himself with two illegal organisations. Is this legal in the UK? How a contender to PM position can calls enemies of the UK “friends” with no consequences?
Proscription makes it a criminal offence to: • belong, or profess to belong, to a proscribed organisation in the UK or overseas (section 11 of the Act); • invite support for a proscribed organisation (and the support is not, or is not restricted to the provision of money or other property) (section 12(1)); • arrange, manage or assist in arranging or managing a meeting in the knowledge that the meeting is to support or further the activities of a proscribed organisation, or is to be addressed by a person who belongs or professes to belong to a proscribed organisation (section 12(2)); or to address a meeting if the purpose of the address is to encourage support for, or further the activities of, a proscribed organisation (section 12(3));and • wear clothing or carry or display articles in public in such a way or in such circumstances as arouse reasonable suspicion that an individual is a member or supporter of the proscribed organisation (section 13).
A QC practising in public law has shed some light. He explained that no such problem arises unless and until Corbyn says something public which invites support or otherwise raises issues under the provisions you mention. Statements made before the recent proscription cannot impose liability: the proscription order is not retrospective.
Nor does he think a statement suggesting proscription should be revoked would breach the law. Proscription would (rightly) be interpreted not to prevent freedom of political debate.


My New Article - Raphael Cohen-Almagor and Mohammed S. Wattad, “The Legal Status of Israeli-Arabs/Palestinians”, GNLU Law & Society Review, Vol. 1 (March 2019): 1-28.

The authors argue for accommodating the interests of the Israeli-Arabs/Palestinians. Israel should strive to safeguard equal rights and liberties for all citizens notwithstanding religion, race, ethnicity, colour, gender, class or sexual orientation, and insisting that citizens have also duties to fulfil. Israel needs to strive for equality in housing, in municipal budgets, in allocation of resources; fight against racism, bigotry and discrimination, and introduce changes to accommodate interests of Israeli-Arabs/Palestinians so that citizens would "feel at home" in their own country. It is argued that delegates of the Arab/Palestinian minority should be represented, in accordance with their size in society, in the parliament and in the government. Symbols of the state should be accommodated to give expression to all citizens of Israel. Since Israel is defined as a Jewish and democratic state, there is a responsibility to embrace all Israeli citizens. In doing so, Israel does not negate the essence of its being Jewish. Furthermore, studies of all religions that exist in Israel should be made available.

https://ucl.academia.edu/RaphaelCohenalmagor/Papers


My Book Review - Naomi and Asa Kasher, Leibowitz Way (Moshav Ben Shemen: Keter, 2018, Hebrew), Israel Affairs (February 2019).


Leibowitz was (possibly still is) one of the most influential Israeli philosophers. He was sharp and provocative, uncompromising and principled, stubborn and polemic. Leibowitz had no qualms to insult others when he wanted to make a point, had no fear to fight for his controversial views, and he relished public attention. Many saw Leibowitz as a modern prophet who was only accountable to his conscience and to God; a prophet who saw it his mission to direct the people to go in the right way, his way, and to show the people and its leaders the light when the light is obscured by reality, misconceptions, corruption of the mind and vanity. Leibowitz never kept his opinions to himself. He stood before crowds, media and leaders, and hammered his ideas as an axe. As a believer, Leibowitz did not question God. Similarly, as a public intellectual, and unlike many philosophers, Leibowitz used exclamation marks far more often than question marks. He was not a subtle public intellectual. Rather, he spoke his views loudly, explicitly and in the most outspoken way. His words of reproof and admonition were the result of Leibowitz´s understanding of Judaism, the way it was shaped by its past, the way it is startled by the present, and the way he thought its future should be molded (p. 128). Leibowitz would fight for his beliefs as a lioness who protects her cubs. You could either like Leibowitz, or you dislike and disapprove of him; it was difficult to remain neutral regarding the Leibowitz phenomenon.

Naomi and Asa Kasher are clearly intrigued. They attempt to fathom Leibowitz’s writings and deconstruct his ideas in an intelligible way, something they admit is a difficult -- if not an impossible -- task. Leibowitz was first and foremost an Orthodox Jew with a distinct interpretation of Jewish Law (Halacha), interpretation that led him to hold unconventional views. Asa sees Leibowitz as an example of a public intellectual who resides among his people, who pains its hardships and, at the same time, rebukes them for what he perceives as its failings. Leibowitz’s courage, purity of intentions, independent mind, unspoiled values and moral zeal constitute a model to follow, exhibiting the true of virtues of the public intellectual and social critique (p. 142). Asa walks in Leibowitz’s footsteps.

Continue reading at https://ucl.academia.edu/RaphaelCohenalmagor/Book-Reviews


Theatre – Come From Away

We all know what happened on September 11, 2001. Less known what happened to many thousands of passengers who were flying from one place to another on that fateful day, when their flights were diverted and forced to land for fear of other plans come crushing.

Come from Away tells the story of a little community of Gander in the Canadian island of Newfoundland. As part of Operation Yellow Ribbon, 38 jumbo jets and four military flights bound for the United States landed at Newfoundland’s Gander International Airport — the nearest sizable airport on the continent.

As a result of the detour, 6,759 passengers and airline crew members — plus 9 cats, 11 dogs, and a pair of endangered apes — arrived in Gander, descending on the small northeastern town (and its nearby villages) and nearly doubling its population of 9,651. They all needed a place to stay and sleep, clothes, food and many other things. The people of Gander rushed to do the right thing.


Come From Away tells the story of a community, mobilized to host the stranded passengers. It is a great feel-good musical, a tale of generosity and beautiful human kindness. The music is great. The story is emotional and touching. The acting and singing superb. Go! Strike this: Run!! The best musical I have seen for many years.

***** on Rafi’s scale.


Gem of the Month – Symphonic Masters

What a treat it is to see and listen to the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra playing Vaughan Williams’ sublime Fantasia, Mozart’s Violin Concerto No.5 and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5. The conductor of the first and last pieces was Pinchas Zukerman. The RPO managed more or less without a conductor as Zukerman showed his extraordinary skill as a violinist playing the leading role in the Mozart’s Violin Concerto. Zukerman is a true virtuoso violin player. His playing seems effortless. It is a true gem to see and listen to him, especially with the RPO.


Gem of the Month – London

 

 

 

I continue my exploration of London, visiting different neighbourhoods, usually those that have some cultural offerings, music or theatre. I love the South Bank. I stroll the busy streets and often reminded of the Tel Aviv buzz. There are many similarities between the two cities. There are far many commonalities between Israelis and the people of London than Israelis and people of Yorkshire. Immigration, multiculturalism, being a world centre, all make London a thriving and most exciting city that I very much enjoy.

 

Gem of the Month – Danzón No. 2 by Marquez

 

Gustavo Dudamel and Orquesta Sinfónica Simón Bolívar.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXeWiixwEz4


Monthly Poem

I Love My Gold Fish
12 February 2010
Beverley

For Roei who needed a poem for school

I love my gold fish
He’s my best friend
I call him “Jimmy”
Jimmy listens to all I say
Night and day.
Jimmy never interrupts my talk
Never runs away, can’t walk.
I love my gold fish
I love Jimmy so much.

I love my gold fish
Jimmy never disturbs my sleep
All he does is just “beep” “beep”.
Jimmy is s-o-o-o nice
so very quiet, less than mice
even mom loves how he behaves
and dad doesn’t say much
(only sort-of-sings when he shaves).
I love my gold fish
I love Jimmy so much.

I love my gold fish
Jimmy doesn’t want my food
Jimmy doesn’t like to share
And that’s just fine with me Sir.
Jimmy eats all that I give him
Which I think is gross (yak)
but kind Jimmy doesn’t care.
I love my gold fish
I love Jimmy so very much.

Raphael Almagor



Light Side - when people get bored at the airport




Peace and Love. Yours as ever,

Rafi

My last communications are available on Israel: Democracy, Human Rights, Politics and Society, http://almagor.blogspot.com

People wishing to subscribe to this Monthly Newsletter are welcome to e-mail me at r.cohen-almagor@hull.ac.uk
Follow me on Twitter at @almagor35
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