With every power for good to stay and guide me, comforted and inspired beyond all fear, I'll live these days with you in thought beside me, and pass, with you, into the coming year. The old year still torments our hearts, unhastening; the long days of our sorrow still endure; Father, grant to the souls thou hast been chastening that thou hast promised, the healing and the cure. Should it be ours to drain the cup of grieving even to the dregs of pain, at thy command, we wil...
Over the last few weeks several banks and other financial institutions have collapsed, leaving lots of savers and investors with gigantic losses. I keep wondering (and maybe I am just overlooking something)... Given that those banks and other institutions managed both savings and loans, isn't it odd that savings are LOST when a bank collapses but LOANS still have to be repaid?
Islamic fundamentalism and the massive demonstrations against Israel this month have finally resulted in a surprise, perhaps, for the world. What many people regarded as "criticism of Israel", opposition to which was dismissed as using the anti-Semitic club, has apparently made some people realise what was going on. "Jews back into the ovens" was finally understood not so much as a "legitimate criticism of Israel's actions" but as plain anti-Semitism. Several groups in Germany and Italy ha...
Every now and then one finds stories such as these: http://lawhawk.blogspot.com/2009/01/un-human-rights-bigwig-arrested-on.html I do not want to go into detail because some crimes are really beyond discussion. But the updates to the article are intriguing: S ince it's the UN, not so much. The UN has been bulletproof to these charges before, and I don't see it changing anytime soon, despite the fact that change is sorely needed at the UN. And finally, there is a conclusion: H...
What really is behind the numbers reported on the number of civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip? Italian newspaper Corriere Della Sera reported Thursday that a doctor working in Gaza's Shifa Hospital claimed that Hamas has intentionally inflated the number of casualties resulting from Israel's Operation Cast Lead. "The number of deceased stands at no more than 500 to 600. Most of them are youths between the ages of 17 to 23 who were recruited to the ranks of Hamas, who sent them to ...
"During the American Civil War (1861-1865), the Copperheads nominally favored the Union and strongly opposed the war, for which they blamed abolitionists, and they demanded immediate peace and resisted draft laws. They wanted Lincoln and the Republicans ousted from power, seeing the president as a tyrant who was destroying American republican values with his despotic and arbitrary actions. Some Copperheads tried to persuade Union soldiers to desert. They talked of helping Confederate prisoner...
Chapter I - Imazighen (Berbers) The Imazighen (singular Amazigh) or Berbers are the indigenous peoples of northern Africa. In the 20th century their home countries went through extensive periods of Arabisation, and their own customs and language were made illegal until a revival starting a few years ago. I have myself met only few Imazighen and know little of their customs. But the few individuals I have met were extraordinarily polite and nice. They are what in the past would ha...
Going back in history... 1. The British territory? The largest part became the Kingdom of Jordan. The Negev, coast line, Jerusalem, and the Galil ultimately got their old name back and became Israel. The rest can become a part of the Kingdom of Jordan or Egypt or declare itself independent, I don't care; and neither does Israel. The official name of the territory was "Palestine (Land of Israel)". It can be seen in Hebrew on British money ("pounds") from the territory and before...
For 3000 years have Israelites lived in the land of Israel. For less than 200 years was Israel under the control of Arabs. For the longest time it was part of Turkey. In the late 19th centuries Jews bought land in Israel and started settling there. In 1948 they were a majority at the coast, the Galil, and the Negev. By that time Turkey had lost the region to Britain. And Britain divided "Palestine (Land of Israel)", as it was officially called, into three: Transjordan, Jewish majority Cisjord...
Most news from Gaza has been authored by Hamas. But the Palestinian Authority (the ACTUAL representative of the "Palestinian" people) also have a camera crew: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7kq_4y-Kts Over the last three years Hamas have murdered hundreds of people in Gaza. NOBODY cared. The Palestinian Authority spoke up occasionally, but couldn't be heard over the world screaming at Israel. In the mean time Hamas was permitted to murder Arabs and Jews, freely and without fear of punis...
Israel is fine with a two-state solution. Israel is also fine with Gaza and the West-Bank being part of Egypt and Jordan. Israel has been fine with those two solutions when they already came up. I think we can stop worrying about “Zionist extremists” who don’t exist. I have seen east-Jerusalem. I don’t think Israel wants it. It’s the most holy site of Judaism that Arabs demand and that Israel wants to keep, not the entire city. Let’s divide Jerusalem, Isra...
According to the theory of evolution one species does not turn into another species. How one species can evolve into two species without ever crossing a "species border" is apparently more difficult to understand than I thought. When I first learned about the theory of evolution, understanding how different species evolve was no problem for me. I didn't know it was difficult for others. It is. If you don't understand evolution (for example, if you believe that evolution is about one specie...
I have updated the Daily Extrablatt. http://www.netneurotic.de/Extrablatt/Extrablatt.html The Daily Extrablatt What if the press of today had existed back then