Category Archives: Transhuman News

A worshiper, holding an American and an Israeli flag, prays during The Day of Prayer for the Peace of Jerusalem, on Jerusalems promenade, in 2011.. (photo credit:BAZ RATNER/REUTERS)

Christiane Amanpour was on my balcony scanning the Mount of Olives and the Temple Mount with her eyes. The CNN journalist had come to my home to interview me about settlers and the Bible, and I guessed from her line of British accented-questioning but do you hear God telling you to take this land? that she was hoping to ensnare me into saying something politically incorrect and juicy.

Suddenly, her eyes locked on the large Israeli flag fluttering on the balcony and asked: What is the symbolism of the two blue lines on the flag is it that Israel will control the land between the Nile and the Euphrates?

Nothing would have made her happier than if I had gone biblical on her and said that yes, God had promised this land to the children of Abraham! But instead, I went liberal: You know, I heard that the two lines represent the splitting of the Red Sea and that the star in the middle is the Jewish people leaving the slavery of Egypt and walking toward the freedom of Israel. The flag represents the Jewish peoples fight for self-determination after 2,000 years of oppression, and the values of liberty.

Amanpour, looking somewhat dissatisfied, left the flag motif and went onto other topics.

However, when I think about the flag of Israel today, with the Star of David flanked by two blue lines, I wonder if it represents the reality of the Jewish people. Back in the Exodus, we were one united nation, walking on dry land as two giant walls of sea stood on either side of us. But today we are actually two nations, 6 million living in Israel, 6 million living in the US, with a huge ocean separating us. Maybe the right way to draw a flag of the Jewish people is two Stars of David on either side, with a thick blue line going down the middle?

The recent Kotel scandal was a powerful tremor, with some pundits calling for a divorce between American and Israeli Jews. Also, many articles have been written over the past few years questioning whether Israels nationalist values comport with American Jewish liberal values. And even without political issues that divide us, the life of the Middle East is not like that of North America, linguistically, culturally and even Jewishly. Like two continents set on tectonic plates, the Jewish people can easily drift apart.

I, too, have been guilty of perpetuating this drift. I have been flying to North America for years for speaking engagements, teaching seminars, and fund-raising. Whenever I arrived at a fabulously wealthy synagogue or temple, my Zionism and my Israel-first impulse would kick in hard. In my mind I would imagine the building empty, sold to non-Jews, the congregants packing boxes to ship to their new homes in Israel. A strong sense of Zionism is a good thing, but the frustration and jealousy I felt toward American Jewry put a barrier between me and the people I came to see.

A few years ago I listened to an audiobook called Millionaire Mind. In it, the author said that if you meet a very successful person and subtly curse his good fortune because of jealousy, you will never become a millionaire. The only way to become rich is by rooting for and blessing the successful person to keep on winning. This wisdom hit me like a ton of bricks: Here I was trying to strengthen Israel through building a connection with American Jews, but I was sabotaging the whole thing with my righteous indignation and jealousy.

Now I took it upon myself to reform my ways and become a blesser. Today, whenever I come to a synagogue or temple in North America, I bless the building and the congregation, I bless the rabbi, and the Jewish education, and I bless the couples to have more children and to raise them right. I certainly did not come all the way from Israel to cause more division I come from Israel to reconnect with my American mishpaha (family), to send them blessings from Jerusalem, and to make sure we as a people dont drift apart. Of course, now that Im a sending good energy, my work has become much more successful.

But still, being a staunch Zionist can lead to frustration with American Jewry, some of whom make little effort toward building the Jewish state, the greatest project of the Jewish people in 2,000 years. So now, after blessing the congregation, I urge them to take a small step toward Israel, like committing to drinking Israeli wine on Friday night. This certainly supports Israeli business, but more important, it puts the water and the fruit, the air and the soil of Israel itself to enter and unite with the body. Many people have told me that since they began they have accepted upon themselves to drink Israeli wine, they feel more connected with the homeland. This is a small step, but a meaningful one.

Indeed, the greatest divide in the Jewish world today is between American Jewry and Israeli Jewry. That divide has been exacerbated by tensions having to do with religious control of the Western Wall, acceptance of conversions and marriages, and questions of the future of Judea and Samaria. But while real questions underlie these tensions, the resulting rift in our peoplehood is disastrous and plays right into the hands of our enemies.

We mustnt listen to those cynical voices who call for divorce they are not our better angels. On the contrary, will have to work hard to hold hands across the Atlantic, and use the Internet and the airplane to stay connected. Lets do everything possible to the ameliorate tensions between us and thereby ensure that the flag of Israel remains with only one, unified, Star of David.

Yishai Fleisher is the international spokesman for the Jewish community of Hebron.

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Two Jewish nations, one flag - The Jerusalem Post mobile website

The mainstream right wing of the U.S. political spectrum, which has inexplicably been handed the keys to the White House, is utterly baffling to observe from the outside. When a misogynist multibillionaire with zero experience in matters governmental, diplomatic, or military is handed the reins of power to the world's most powerful country, you know we are truly, deeply fucked.

And now Kid Rock wants a piece of the action. The Detroit rapper and Southern-rock revivalist, born Robert Ritchie, has officially announced that he's running for a seat in the United States Senate. Like Donald Trump, whose presidential campaign he supported, Ritchie has no political experience. He also lacks any postsecondary education.

Fortunately for him, those things are not prerequisites for senatorship. In fact, the requirements are pretty minimal: you have to be over 30 and you have to reside in the state in which you are elected. Having a criminal record isn't detrimental, which is good for Ritchie, who has faced charges for assault and alcohol-related offences on a number of occasions.

His Kid Rock for U.S. Senate website makes no mention of party affiliation, but Ritchie has proclaimed himself a Republican in the past. (He has also proclaimed himself an American Badass, a redneck, a pimp, and "the Bullgod", for the record.) Kid Rock is just what the GOP seems to be looking for these days, a true avatar of old-fashioned American values: a weed-smoking, cougar-killing former drug dealer who once starred in a sex tape with Scott Stapp.

Kid Rock is proudly politically incorrect and unapologetically vulgar, traits that might cost him some support among more old-guard conservatives. Then again, if Donald "Grab'em by the Pussy" Trump can get elected, clearly no one gives a shit about anything anymore.

Without further ado, here are a few of Kid Rock's most problematic lyrics.

1. "Balls in Your Mouth" (1993)

Sample lyric: "Cruisin' through town in my jacked-up truck/Eyes open cuz I'm scopin' for a big butt slut/One that I can take straight back to my house/And have her suck my dick and put my balls in her mouth"

Pretty much any Kid Rock song on the topic of sex could be construed as sexist (see also: "Fuck U Blind" and "WCSR"), but "Balls in Your Mouth" is some seriously next-level misogyny. The song finds our hero seeking out a partner for a specific activity. He finds one, the act is consummated to the mutual pleasure of both participants, and then the next day he publicly slut-shames her, as any gentleman would.

2. "Black Chick, White Guy" (1996)

Sample lyric: "Pretty girl in the ghetto, go figure/Yeah, she got macked by some dope dealin' nigger"

Hey, Kid: you know who's allowed to use the N word? Take a look in the mirror. Not that guy.

3. "Fuck Off" (1998)

Sample lyric: "Kid Rock, I couldn't be no Bozo/And I get too much P to ever be no homo...I'm not Peter Pan, I don't fuck with fairies/But I bust more rhymes than virgin cherries"

To his credit, Kid Rock, like Barack Obama, has "evolved" on LGBT issues. Sort of. Two years ago he said "As an ordained minister I dont look forward to marrying gay people, but Im not opposed to it." Wait, Kid Rock is an ordained minister?!

4. "Midnight Train to Memphis" (2001)

Sample lyric: "Doped-up rebel with an attitude/Shit/So fuck a bitch...I won't switch, won't quit my vices"

Based on a cursory perusal of his lyrics, Ritchie's vices include cocaine, hallucinogenic mushrooms, and marijuana. This would make him the only open and unrepentant user of illicit drugs in the U.S. Senate. Which is...progressive? Maybe? In any case, he's on record as supporting the legalization of coke and heroin. Good luck with that!

5. "Half Your Age" (2007)

Sample lyric: "She's half your age and twice as hot...Oh she wakes up every morning and she folds my clothes"

Kid Rock has had his fill of women who have, like, opinions and shit. He's found someone young and malleable who will do his housework and not complain about it. The American dream, really.

6. "3 CATT Boogie" (2012)

Sample lyric: "Banks hedgin bets for the next generation/And Wall Streets stirrin up the whole situation"

Every once in a long while, Kid Rock lets a vaguely political sentiment creep into his lyrics. These lines from "3 CATT Boogie" reference the financial crisis of 2007-08. Trouble is, he seems to be suggesting that big banks and Wall Street have to shoulder much of the blame for it. Needless to say, this is not the Republican party line. In fact, the GOP is trying to repeal much of the Dodd-Frank Act, which was designed to protect consumers from another financial meltdown. The Republicans' Financial CHOICE Act has been characterized by top Democrats as a handout to Wall Street. We're shocked to admit that we're with Kid Rock on this one, even though we're 99 percent certain he thinks Dodd-Frank is a brand of hot-dog wiener.

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Kid Rock runs for US Senate: his most politically incorrect lyrics - Straight.com (blog)

by Michael Daly

Affordable housing or preservation? Workforce housing or grand estates? People or animals? Senior housing or clean water? Preservation or sustainability?

It has been (cynically) said that todays home buyer is tomorrows environmentalist. As the belgian block is being laid, the privets are being planted and the gates are being installed, theyre at town hall crying No More Development! Its Too Crowded! We Have To Protect The Water/Pond/Scenic Vistas/Salamanders! They become NIMBYs.

Its human nature for people to protect their turf and their investments. Rather than say the politically incorrect truth, such as Im afraid that the project will bring people that I dont like here, the traffic/pond/water quality/salamander excuse is used. Granted, its incumbent upon communities to choose sites for affordable housing wisely, where residents have access to shopping and public transportation. Realistically, every site will be in someones back yard.

With our aging and dwindling population and unaffordable housing costs on Long Island, the East End is on a course for becoming one big retirement community. Fewer young people living here will result in fewer children and students, and schools and businesses closing. Were on an unsustainable course.

What is a Sustainable Community? The Institute for Sustainable Communities says:

A sustainable community is one that is economically, environmentally, and socially healthy and resilient. It meets challenges through integrated solutions rather than through fragmented approaches that meet one of those goals at the expense of the others. And it takes a long-term perspective one thats focused on both the present and future, well beyond the next budget or election cycle.

It includes things such as:

Inspiring, effective, and responsive leadership

Conservation of water, land, energy, and nonrenewable resources

Safe and healthy housing accessible to all

The basic human rights of all community members are respected and defended against injustices including exploitation and psychological and physical harm

Meaningful employment opportunities for all citizens

Looks like we have some work to do!

A reader of my last months Be A YIMBY column recently wrote, saying I started expediting permits around 10 years ago. I have been beaten and bloodied by NIMBYs ever sincethe projects I have worked on have been held up for as many as seven years The most frustrating element in these altercations has always been the fact that the existing zoning often allowed the uses when the projects began. The NIMBYs filibustered and steamrolled boards into making changes in the code. Those changeswere then used to further undermine commercial development.

Guys and gals, we have the technology available to create housing communities with safer water treatment. Its not new development that is polluting our waters, its the old developments with outdated septic systems placed at the shoreline, where they were always placed in years gone by. Thats whats causing the brown tide and algae blooms around our bays and ponds. Recent county and township initiatives to support replacing outdated septic systems, along with strict requirements for new development wastewater treatment will certainly help.

Want clean air? Then lets create housing in our villages and hamlets, where workers dont have to drive 30+ miles to get to work, so they can stop polluting the air and burning all those fossil fuels. Well have less traffic, too! When was the last time you tried to travel east in the morning or west in the afternoon?

And lets not sit around waiting for our politicians to do this needed work. Many men and women who stand up and run for office in hope of making our community a better place end up sitting at the dais, getting screamed at, threatened and intimidated by the self-serving NIMBYs that come to protect their own little world. I just witnessed it myself at the June 13 Southampton Town Council Meeting on the PDD Extension for the Sandy Hollow Affordable Housing Project. The behavior of the neighbors to this development was disgraceful.

Change starts at the grassroots. We must go to village and town hall and demand decisions creating sustainable communities are made. If necessary, shame the NIMBYs and show support for our elected officials to make decisions in support of the greater public good. Then be prepared to share the burden by saying Yes, In My Back Yard. Lets go!

Michael Daly is an East Ender and regular contributor to The East End Beacon on community issues that he cares deeply about. He can be reached at 631.525.6000 or by email at mfdaly1@gmail.com.

The East End Beacon is your guide to social and environmental issues, arts & culture on the East End of Long Island.

Originally posted here:
The Homestead: It's Not About Either/Or, It's About AND - East End Beacon