Having read a review of Jonathan Pollard's recent rant, my assumption at least, is that he ill, perhaps both mentally and physically. The only other explanation I have come to is that since arriving in Jerusalem he has fallen under the mantel of right-wing nationalist fascists headed by the ‘triumvirate of evil’.
“Pollard: ‘Jew-hatred’ a foundational belief of ‘Amalek’ Biden administration” “Convicted spy who recently moved to Israel is honored at Jerusalem Day event at prominent yeshiva, launches into diatribe against Democrats, Palestinians, Jordanians and UN” https://www.timesofisrael.com/pollard-jew-hatred-a-foundational-belief-of-amalek-biden-administration/
I’ve spent a good part of this afternoon listening, watching (YouTube), and comparing arguably two of the world’s greatest tenors, Franco Corelli and Luciano Pavarotti.
Wrongly or rightly, I used Puccini’s Nessun Dorma from his opera Turandot as the basis for comparison.
I am of course not in a position to offer a finite assessment, I can only report my feelings as over and over I hear various versions of this rendition. What I can report is tears flowed freely and I am still none the wiser as to the definitive delivery.
Maybe the best is to say that both in their singular way are unique.
As a way of clearing my head, I watched several times the 2021 remastered edit by director Joel Gallen: Tom Petty, Jeff Lynne, Steve Winwood, Dhani Harrison & Prince pay tribute to George Harrison at the 2004 Induction Ceremony (Rock & Roll Hall of Fame) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dWRCooFKk3c
The original I have watched many times over the years. This time around I was trying to see where editing had maybe improved the raw original.
It is of course depressing that once again Israel is involved in a round of fighting both with Hamas in Gaza and with the Muslim population inside Israel. I suppose given the provocation in (East) Jerusalem, it was only natural that Israeli Muslims would make their feelings know.
Two thoughts. Firstly Israel appears to have a knee-jerk reaction to incidents. I may be wrong, but Israel does not seem to have any medium or long-term plans in place to move matters forward.
Secondly, this crisis, manufactured by Netanyahu must in some respects be heartwarming. Leaving aside his responsibility and manipulation in bringing these circumstances to a head, the crisis plays right into his hands, with, so it would seem at least at the time of writing, the near-collapse of the Lapid/Bennett coalition.
Should that happen and the mandate to form a government is returned to the Knesset, and given that Netanyahu is barred from forming a government, either the mandate will be passed to a Bibi loyalist or the great manipulator will drive for a 5th election. A government for example under Israel Katz with Bibi pulling the strings would be acceptable to Bennett and Saár, thus ensuring a right-wing government.
Either way, Bibi wins and the rank and file citizens of Israel, be they Jews, Muslims, or Christians are once again the losers.
It’s a pity that a small group of Muslims, for the most part, I assume teenagers and young men, have played directly into Bibi’s hands.
While the head of Hamas political bureau Ismail Haniyeh stays safe and sound in Qatar, the people of Gaza are subject to a reign of terror at the hands of Hamas. What a hero he must be to his people?
The latest Pew report on US Jewry makes interesting reading.
“10 key takeaways from the new Pew survey of American Jews - The Times of Israel” https://www.timesofisrael.com/10-key-takeaways-from-the-new-pew-survey-of-american-jews/
Last night attended a concert given by Gil Shohat and NuritGalron. This was the first concert as we slowly return to ‘life’ following 15 months of COVID19. Within 15 minutes a siren sounded and the concert stopped. After a break of a few minutes, proceedings restarted only to be stopped again by a second siren. Although the concert once again restarted, shortly afterward the evening was drawn to an early close.
In the early hours of this morning, we were twice woken by sirens, both times entering our secured room.
My thoughts turned to the cities, towns, and communities that live in the greater Gaza area, how can we collectively let this cycle go on and on. It’s not just Israeli citizens, Jews, Muslims, who are suffering, the plight of the residents of Gaza is heartbreaking, more so given the tyrannical rule of Hamas.
We in Israel appear to do little to find a solution, while the rest of the world appears to do even less. That in itself is surely a crime against humanity?
The world can come together to defeat COVID19 but is impervious to the suffering in Gaza.
Unbelievable?