Monday War News UPDATE: Israel Blasts Truck Full of Grads as ‘Cast Lead’ Continues and as Jewish Casualties Mount from Continuing Kassams, Mortars; Islamic Retaliations in Jerusalem, Kever Rachel, Route 443, Kedumim; 74 Illegals Nabbed in Tel Aviv

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Commentary;

As the Israel Air Force continues blasting away on day 3 of ‘Cast Lead’, Kassam and mortar hits on Ashkelon, Ashdod and the Negev mount up as do Jewish casualties. Are we witnessing a replay of Lebanon 2006? Defense Minister Ehud Barak is quoted as stating that this is “all-out war” with Hamas, a “war to the bitter end.”

Remember those words if or when the same electioneering opportunistic ploysters Ehud Barak and Tzipy Livni spin a repeat of the Lebanon conflict results, imposed ceasefire in Gaza with international forces to further obstruct Israel’s sovereignty and self-defense. MB read more

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Bibi Like ML Team Owner Not Serious About Winning

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Commentary;

No, this is not a mis-posting meant for a sports blog. 7 years before 2008’s glorious Philadelphia Phillies World Series championship, a future Hall of Fame pitcher and one of baseball’s finest 3rd basemen (at the time) both talked back to team management telling them that they were not serious about contending and winning.

In turn, Curt Schilling and Scott Rolen were both sent packing and traded from the team. Schilling was subsequently instrumental in bring three World Series titles to 2 cities and Rolen helped bring his team to the World Series once. read more

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Sunday War News Updates: Artillery Batteries Deployed Along Gaza Border, Cabinet Approves Reserves Call-Up, 40 Smuggling Tunnels Blasted in 4 Minutes, Thousands of Gazans Pour into Egypt; Hezbollah Retaliation Threats; Baby Injured by Stoning, Arabs Nabbed Burning Tires in Beit Hanina

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Sunday War News: ‘Cast Lead’ Day 2 — IAF Continues Bombing Hamas Facilities as Rockets Reach Near Ashdod, Barak Opens Gaza Crossings, No Advance Notice to Shalit’s Dad; Molotov Thrown at Jerusalem Home

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Parsha Vayigash 5769: Jewish Unity, Still As Elusive As Ever

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by Moshe Burt

Parsha Mikeitz records the whole affair between Yosef and the brothers when they came to Mitzrayim to buy food and were accused by the Viceroy of being spies. We learned how after hearing their story and family history, Yosef demanded that they bring their youngest brother to him and incarcerated Shimon as insurance that the brothers would indeed return with Binyamin, their youngest brother. We learn that in the middle of Parsha Mikeitz, with the imprisonment of Shimon, the brothers recognized and attributed their predicament to the sin they had committed earlier by throwing Yosef into the pit and then selling him to the Mitzriyim. Yosef heard and understood their conversation and left their presence to cry silently. (Perek 42, posukim 21-24) read more

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Israel Launches “Cast Lead” Operation Against Terror Infrastructure, Weapons

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Commentary;

Israel has apparently launched a major operation, dubbed “Cast Lead”, against terror in Gaza. President Shimon Peres has announced that “measures will not include invasion” but Defense Minister Ehud Barak notes; “it won’t be easy and it won’t be short.” Over 200 were killed and over 300 wounded in today’s initial strikes targeting numerous Hamas locations as well as weapons and ammo storage areas.

“Israeli-Arabs” have reacted with rioting and, in one case, an Arab attempted to run-down an Israel polliceman in Jerusalem. read more

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Friday War News: 25 Mortar Shells Pound South as Barak Opens Gaza Crossings, 10s of Thousands of Rockets With 40km Range; Roadside Bomb Found in Central Israel; IDF Nabs Terrorist in Abu Dis

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The Puzzlement About Israelis and Chanukah

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by Moshe Burt

On Thursday, this blog commented on a Ynet opinion piece entitled “We Lost Our Killer Instinct.”

The piece dealt with what many have perceived for some time; How Israelis have become more “I”, “me”, individual-oriented and how this orientation change relates to an IDF basically controlled by the Attorney-General and the so-called “Justice (sic) Ministry, by fear of the media, by fear of parents and the streets of Tel Aviv rather than by the chief of staff and defense ministry. read more

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Has the IDF Lost its Instincts of Yesteryear?

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Commentary;

It used to be that the spirit, the credo of the IDF was unity, was “follow-me” commanders and command structure, was the collective security of the nation — in all of its regions and sectors. It used to be that the pain felt in the Negev, in Galil, in Jerusalem was felt in Tel Aviv, Haifa, or for that matter, Beit Shemesh. Ynet’s Guy Bechor writes of the change for the worst saying;

“We see excess of individualism, whereby only the individual is of interest to us, rather than the State or the army.” read more

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