We're thinking of just transforming MR into an Israeli music blog supplemented by intermittent eye candy. Sub-titled Zionist hiphop at its very, very best:

Lo nolad ha ben'zona. Potty mouth.

Previously:
* Olmert's Speech At Yad Vashem: "They Reject the Right Of the Jewish People To Exist"
* They Did It Because They Hate Jews
* Roundup Of Ways Israeli-Syrian War Might Start. As Of This Morning.

Rarely will we tell you that you have to read the whole thing. You have to read read the whole thing. Themes to pay extra attention to:

(1) The stamina of Israeli society under conditions of attrition, and the willingness of Israelis to sustain casualties provided that operations are genuinely necessary and making Israel safer:

(2) How badly UNIFIL screws Israel. Some of our previous background posts on why the new UNIFIL mandate was inadequate are here and here,

(3) How Syria continues to arm Hezbollah under the UN's nose (and, actually, under the UN's de facto protection):

(4) The importance of academic and cultural norms on Israel's warfighting capabilities:

References:
* How Israel Bungled the Second Lebanon War [Middle East Quarterly]
* How Badly Does the UN Draft Screw Israel? Part I: Expanded UNIFIL Presence [MR]
* How Badly Does the UN Draft Screw Israel? Part IV: UNIFIL Will Not Get a Chapter 7 Mandate [MR]

Previously:
* UN Question Of The Day: Is Iran Smuggling Weapons To Hezbollah? Duh.
* Hezbollah Probably Lost the War, But They May Never Have Been In It To Win
* What About Disengagement Now? - Linking Lebanon II To the Disengagement Is A Really Bad Tactic

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers

Last March AQ was upset about the prospect of Hamas not trying to wipe out Israel for a month or two. It looks like the recent barrage of rockets aimed at Israeli hospitals and schoolhouses have convinced them that Hamas is still fighting the good fight. But apparently they want Hamas to try a little harder:

Which is, of course, exactly what Hamas intends to do. And their efforts to light up the entire Middle East will almost certainly end with a major confrontation in Gaza and many dead on both sides. There's only so long a modern democratic state can tolerate the low-level warfare that Hamas is inflicting on southern communities.

PS - the only way that anyone can argue that Israel and the US don't have a "common enemy" is if they don't think that AQ is an enemy of the US. Which, we understand, many of them don't. But it's good to clarify what the stakes are.

References:
* AQ Complains That Hamas Is Not Insane Enough [MR]
* Al-Qaeda video urges ‘bombs, fire’ on Israel [YNet]

Previously:
* Al Qaeda Says Israel is Next Target, Comments on Gender Roles
* 65% of Palestinians support Al Qaeda terrorism
* And the Wheels Come Off - (2) Gaza

Cross-posted to:
* Israpundit

Like Spring means sunshine, finals week means link dumps. The big news is that Israel killed three armed out of uniform Palestinian militia members (what we used to call "Hamas terrorists" before Hamas, you know, got elected) and wounded a fourth. Meryl has the media bias angle and Israellycool has a particularly unfortunate turn of phrase by Hamas officials. By all means, enjoy yourselves.

As for background on why these three particular gentlemen needed to die (the proximate cause was their attempted invasion of Israeli territory), Smooth Stone has some background on Hamas's recent declarations. Also see JihadWatch about the World Union for Progressive Judaism's letter to the UN. In it, they ask the UN to please get the Palestinian Authority - an organization that exists solely on account of the largess of the international community - to stop with the whole "advocating genocide" thing.

References:
* Israeli soldiers kill 3 Hamas militants in Gaza
* Media bias: Only on days that end with a y [Yourish]
* Blow Up [Israellycool]
* Video: Hamas tells Arabs: Genocide of Jews still on [Smooth Stone]
* Open Letter to UN officials on PA's "direct and public incitement to commit genocide" [Jihadwatch]

Previously:
* Abbas: Ceasefire Is Still On. Hamas: No It Isn't (Bonus: Palestinian On Palestinian Gunfight At Rafaf, Nobody Cares)
* Hamas Getting Ready To Start Another War
* Hezbollah And Hamas Escalate Kidnapping Rhetoric, Attempts

The most recent barrage of Qassams almost hit a strategic facility. The fog of this war is growing so dense that it's splitting time in the news cycle with the publication of the Winograd Committee report about the last war - an event that will bring down several ministers and may bring down the entire government. Still, no rest for the Israelis:

The IDF has concluded that a major ground offensive will be necessary to clean out the Gaza rat's nest - and that this major ground operation .will happen sooner or later. When it does, you can be quite sure that Israel will be blamed for the ceasefire - even though 250 rockets and mortars have been fired at Israeli schoolhouses and hospitals since it began. The internationally recognized - though still underfunded - Palestinian government is naturally doing its best to deescalate the situation:

Hamas has been smuggling weapons into Gaza through Egypt's de facto open door policy (and the EU's refusal to do anything about it) since last summer's campaign. The Gaza invasion will take a toll. But if the Palestinians actually believe that they'll be able to take POWs and keep them in Gaza during a major IDF operation, they're dumber than their total failure to establish a state makes them seem.

References:
* Qassam lands near strategic facility in Ashkelon [YNet]
* IDF chief: Gaza incursion inevitable [JPost]
* IDF chief: Ground offensive only way to halt Qassam rocket fire [Ha'aretz]
* Hamas welcomes Gaza op. as chance to nab more troops [JPost]

Previously:
* Like Hezbollah, Hamas Uses Children As Human Shields
* Hamas Terrorists Not Violating Ceasefire Through Clever Trick Of Arming Other Palestinian Terrorists
* Hamas: Koran Says We Can't Recognize Israel

Cross-posted to:
* Israpundit

Thank you to everyone who voted for us in the first round - pending confirmation, we should advance in all five categories. The second round of JIB voting, for Best Posts, is now going on. This is also just a preliminary round, but it's more haphazard than the last one. We've actually got multiple nominations in a few of the categories - but since we don't want to split votes, we've taking the liberty of humbly focusing you on what we think are the better posts (explanations below). We think you'll agree that it would be very helpful to everybody if you could vote for MR's posts in the following categories:

Best Post (Overall) - This Will Not Be Our Last Bow
Best News Post - BREAKING: Blasts in Damascus Around US Embassy
Best Right Wing Post - Screw Rachel Corrie
Best (Post) Series - Beit Hanoun Meme Watch

As you can see, in Best (Post) Series we're nominated for the 11 posts in our criticism of the media's Beit Hanoun coverage. We're also nominated for the 40 or so posts we did on the anti-Papal riots. Although there are more riot posts, including pages upon pages of stuff on the actual theology behind Benedict's speech, the Beit Hanoun stuff is probably the better series. It's more cohesive, it punchier, and it's about a single topic.

We're also nominated for two different Best Right-Wing posts: MR Has A Question For Democratic Jews: Are You Fucking Retarded? and Screw Rachel Corrie. The first one is definitely the more serious-minded of the two (ironically). But we think the Rachel Corrie one is better - it's angrier and funnier, which is what solid demagoguery is all about. Still, people have been voting for both - so what do we know?

We're also technically nominated for one of the anti-Papal riot posts in Best News Post, but that's kind of a mis-categorization. Certainly, it wasn't as good a single news post as the live-blogging of the developments surrounding the clownish attack on the US embassy in Damascus.

We'll be bugging you at least one more time to vote in mid-May during the final round. For now, go forth and vote your conscience. And by "your conscience" we mean "for Mere Rhetoric"

References:
* Index To MR's Series On The Beit Hanoun Incident
* Index To MR's Series On The Anti-Papal Riots
* MR Has A Question For Democratic Jews: Are You Fucking Retarded?
* Screw Rachel Corrie

Previously:
* Glida Cat Wants You To Vote For MR In The JIBs
* Blogish Anti-Semitic Stereotypes, Now With More Funny
* Israeli Model Wednesdays - Photos: Israeli Model Bar Refaeli In SI Swimsuit Edition

At the end of last week the adjusted intelligence estimates for Iranian nuclearization moved the timeline up from 2015 to 2010. At the beginning of this week, Israel and the US are starting to lock in their options:

We're not so sure that the Democrats would support Bush if he launched a preemptive strike against Iran. If the Democratic debates are any indication, there are a whole lot of people against any sort of military action, a good number of people paying lip service to military force "as a last resort", and no one advocating a preemptive attack any time soon. But in Israel that's not going to be the debate. Israelis across the political spectrum - well aware that Iran is planning a second Holocaust, are genuinely united in seeing Iran as a threat.

We're also a little wary of the suggestion that the Pentagon expects Israel to do the job itself. As far as we know, the US has never budged from Bush I policy of denying Israel the "Identify Friend or Foe" (IFF) codes that it would need to cross Iraqi airspace without getting intercepted by Coalition fighters. Then there's the problem of crossing Jordanian airspace. And refueling on the way. And engaging Iranian forces. And having enough payload to destroy the hardened Iranian targets. It's all well and good for the Pentagon to say that they've given Israel the tools to do the job themselves - except the Pentagon has actually been undermining the Israeli defense industry and has been denying them critical technology.

But nonetheless, someone is going to have to take care of this. There are a bunch of lunatics who have declared their intention to eradicate six million Jews. And they're going to have nukes in three years.

References:
* Countdown has begun [YNet]
* US Pressuring South Korea to Weaken South Korean-Israeli Ties [MR]
* Tossing Stones in Heavily Armed Glass Houses [MR]

Previously:
* Mathematical Proof That Negotiating With Iran Is Stupid. Not Wrong. Stupid.
* Iran: Trying To Make Us Stop Building Nukes Will Make Us Build Nukes
* Shaul Mofaz About Iran: "All Options Are On The Table... Time Is Running Out"

Our coverage of the anti-Papal riots was nominated for Best (Post) Series in the JIBs, but there were too many posts for them to index. MR published a series of 11 posts about media coverage of the Beit Hanoun incident. These posts traced the anti-Israel bias in various journalistic memes and tactics. Those posts are categorized and indexed below:

(Intro) Beit Hanoun Meme Watch
(1) "Rage and Tears" - Apparently Theats Of Genocide Are OK If You're Really Upset
(2) "The Palestinians Are Really Pissed Off" - And The NYT Will Publish Death Porn To Prove It
(3) Stupid Headline Tricks - Hey Listen, Calling It A "Massacre" Is Still Bias, Even If You Think You're Being Clever By Quoting Someone
(4) "The al-Athamnah Family" - If You Make The Tragedy Seem Really Personal, Then People Will Really Get Outraged
(Interlude) Convergence of Bias - With This Simple Formula, You Too Can Produce Solid Anti-Israel Journalism
(5) "World Indifference" - We Learned About That Indifference From Every Major Newspaper On The Planet
(6) "Israelis Demoralized and Blaming Themselves" - Actually, No They're Not
(7) "Palestinian Unity (Government / Suicide Bombings / Whatever) Is Israel's Fault" - LIARS
(8) "Israeli Terrorism" - Want To Guess Who Reuters Is Willing To Label A Terrorist?
(9) "It's All About Olmert's Domestic Political Situation" - Predictable Bias Is Real Bias

Our coverage of the anti-Papal riots was nominated for Best (Post) Series in the JIBs, but there were too many posts for them to index. MR published a series of over 40 posts about Pope Benedict XVI's speech and the ensuing anti-Papal riots. These posts included an extensive unpacking of the speech itself, as well as criticism of academic and media reactions to the controversy. 39 of those posts are categorized and indexed below:

(1) Interfaith Dialogue. Holy Hell, Are These People Stupid
(2) They Admit the Pope Is a Billion Times Smarter Than They Are, But Not Really, Ya Know?
(3) They Have No Respect For Their Betters. None.
(4) All Their Examples of Dumb Liberal Ideas Suck And They're Too Ideologically Myopic to Be Ashamed About It
(5) The Total Lack of Any Thought About Anything. Ever. They Don't Even Know The Consequences of Their Own Stupid Moral Equivalence.
(6) Nope, We're Not Going to Tell You. We Promise You This: You've Never Read Anything Like It. It's Quite Simply The Most Amazing Thing You'll Ever Read.
(7) Oh Come On. That's Not Even Credible Moral Equivalence

(1) Murder of Nun is a "Protest"
(2) Condescending, Insufferable Little Pricks
(3) The Implict Admission That Islam Is Violent and That We All Just Have To Live With That
(4) How They Totally Don't Understand Religion
(5) Militant Islam Confuses Them. Except Not Really, Ya Know?

We're inclined to believe that it was never theirs to begin with. At least that's what the American people seem to have decided. But it's always interesting to see how assumptions harden into linguistic ticks harden into conventional wisdom:

"Republicans like control", you say? Because it was the Republicans who opened this Congress by trying to shut down political speech on the Internet. From bland pro-Democratic resentment to glib anti-Republican stereotypes, thus does opinion filter from one myopic self-styled sophisticate to another.

References:
* A Third Way? [Eleanor Clift, Newsweek]
* Republicans Defeat Fascist Democrats (Seriously!!) [MR]

Previously:
* Tell Me Again About How Democrats Can Be Trusted
* Democrats Not So Much With The Cleaning Up Government Corruption
* Democrats Renew Effort To Undermine Electronic Surveillance

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers

Things that are true:

(1) The Winograd Committee report is going to be brutal on Olmert and Peretz.

(2) It will result in widespread public and private calls for Olmert's and Peretz's resignation. These won't be demonstrations and counter-demonstrations - only one giant, angry mob.

(3) This government isn't going anywhere. Kadima members know that if this is the issue that brings down Olmert, then Kadima as a party is doomed. Since they left their home parties to join Sharon's centrist party, it's quite doubtful that they're interested in seeing their new party disintegrate. So...

(4) ... they'll definitely wait a couple of months before trying to oust Olmert. At that point, there will be between one and three wars going on, and nobody is going to try to go public against a sitting Prime Minister during a war. And if those wars go well, then everything's back up in the air. If those wars go poorly, then Israel will be facing an existential threat that makes everyday politics moot.

Update (04:10am PST, 4/30): This post originally referred to an "existentialist threat" rather than an "existential threat" to Israel. Thanks to reader David for catching the error. Let this be a lesson children: don't mix Nietzsche and pro-Israel blogging. Nothing good can ever come of it.

References:
* War report scathing for Olmert, Peretz [YNet]
* Leadership braces for Winograd report [YNet]
* Aide: Peretz did not fail as defense minister during war [Ha'aretz]
* Kadima source: Party could oust PM by summer [Ha'aretz]

Previously:
* Arab MKs Promise To Overthrown Olmert Government, But Even They're Not That Stupid
* Arab Parties "Definitely" Prefer Peretz to Olmert
* Olmert Rejects Palestinian Demands For Shalit

The best we've ever seen this famous open letter done. You won't learn anything you don't know, but a little red meat is good for the complexion now and then:

"You are deeply angered that we do not give up the lands of 1967, which are clearly the obstacle to peace in the Middle East." Quite so.

Also quite so: "You would stand by tomorrow if Israel were facing extinction".

References:
* Open Letter to the World (improved narration)

Previously:
* Hamas: Koran Says We Can't Recognize Israel
* US Public Diplomacy, Tact Don't Extend To Israel
* Iran Now Blaming Sunni-Shia Split On Israel. No, Really.

Turkey's secular military seems increasingly unamused that NATO's only Muslim-majority country (for now) is sliding into Islamism

LGF reports that huge crowds have turned out to support the military's secular stand, with some frankly inspirational words about the secular legacy of Ataturk. AFP is saying that more than one million people showed marched. Captain's Quarters describes it as proof that Turkish secularism still lives

References:
* Turkish Army Threatens Political Intervention on Islamism Fears [Media Line]
* Huge Crowd Protests Against Islamic Rule in Turkey [LGF]
* Turkish Secularism Lives [CQ]

Previously:
* Wonderful Story Of Jewish-Muslim Cooperation On Temple Mount Destroyed... By Radical Muslims
* The Significance Of the Pope's Visit To Turkey - Not That Much, Actually
* Turkey Won't Accept PKK Ceasefire. World Reacts Exactly the Opposite Way They'd React If Israel Refused To Accept Hamas Ceasefire.

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers
* Israpundit

Multiculturalism is super:

Now wrap your mind around this: the school responded by just pretending that farms exist, and that's not the most disturbing part of this story. Rather, in a spectacular example of how Europe is funding its own destruction, may we present the government's uggested remedy? How are Netherlands politicians seeking to stem the tide of appeasement in the fact of radical Islam?

They're considering reducing the tax breaks and welfare payments. The ones going to the parents of the children who are wrecking classrooms - because someone reminded them that pigs exist. Not eliminating. Just reducing.

But they can't, because there's too much political opposition.

References:
* School Scraps Nature Course As Pigs Enrage Muslim Pupils

Previously:
* Guardian Interviews Ayaan Hirsi Ali. Surprised To Find Multiculturalism Crumbling In The Face Of Radical Islam
* Hey Gals, Check This Out - Islamism in the Netherlands
* Touching Dutch Concern for Jewish Sensitivity

Cross-posted to:
* Israpundit

Last day of voting. Basically we're using this as an excuse to post this video of Keren Ann. We found it last night because it was posted to digg and had the word "Israel" in it. Although Keren lives in New York now, she's an Israeli who was born in Caesarea. Close enough:

First round voting ends this afternoon. Go vote for us so that all will be - albeit temporarily - right with the world:

Best All Around - Best Large Blog
Best In Class - Best News/Current Events Blog
Best In Class - Pro-Israel Advocacy Blog
Best In Class - Best Right Wing Political Blog
Specialty - Best Contribution for our Search The Center search engine.

Now here's your Sunday tear-jerker - Keren singing Israeli soldiers on the northern border:

Previously:
* Israeli Hottie Becky Griffin Is Grumpy Because You're Not Voting For MR In The JIBs
* Israeli Model Shelly Hazan Says: Vote For MR In The Jewish and Israeli Blog Awards
* Israeli Hottie Moran Atias Reminds You: Vote For MR In The Jewish and Israeli Blog Awards

Like most Universities, Columbia University's library system maintains lists of resources that students might find useful when doing research projects. One of their sections is a section for "Middle East & Jewish Studies", and under that list is a section about Israel. So there are links to Israeli government sites like the Israeli Foreign Ministry and the Bank of Israel. There are links to American government resources like the CIA World Factbook and the State Department Report on Human Rights. And there are links to Israeli media organizations like GLOBES and Ha'aretz.

And nestled toward the top is - you guessed it - "The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy". Why is Walt and Mearsheimer's testament to the cognitive failures of realism in there? Why is it the only paper about American domestic politics, in a page devoted to links about Israel itself? It really sticks out like a sore thumb - as near as we can tel, it's the only link to an actual paper, rather than to a site. We would be very interested to know how this random paper found its way into a list of places on the web that talk about Israel.

Because apparently if you're going to know anything about Israel, Columbia University thinks that you should know that they control the United States. It's like they're not even trying any more.

References:
* Israel [Columbia University Libraries - Mittle East & Jewish Studies]

Previously:
* Liars, Cheaters, and Thieves
* Aww... Po Baby Doesn't Want To Talk
* Liars, Cheaters, and Thieves

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers

Good news:

Bad news:

"Palestinians in Israel", of course, implies that Israel's Arab citizens - and the people that they elect to help run the country - are Palestinian and not Israeli. "Hezbollah isn't our enemy, the Israeli occupation is the enemy" speaks for itself. We're heartened by the poll results, which seem too indicate that some moderation still exists among Israeli-Arabs. But that's hard to reconcile with what economists would call their revealed preferences - the people they elect and the platforms they support. Saying something to a pollster is cheap. Electing a traitor is a somewhat more overwhelming statement of purpose.

References:
* Hadash official: Hizbullah not Israeli Arabs' enemy [YNet]
* Poll: 75% of Israeli Arabs support Jewish, democratic constitution [Ha'aretz]

Previously:
* Arab Fifth Column Watch - Treason's Just Another Word for Anti-Zionism
* Fifth Column Watch (They Really Do Support Hezbollah Edition)
* Israeli-Arab Fifth Column Watch - If Israelis Support People Who Want To Wipe Out Israel, Is It Still Treason If Those Israelis Happen To Be Arab?

That's skillz with a Z. Make sure you watch the last stunt. It's so good, they show it twice:

The prequel:

There ought to be laws against people being this good at anything. We are quite simply unworthy of living on the same Earth as this guy.

You, on the other hand, we own at beer pong. FYI.

Previously:
* The Daily Show Does Israel [Video]
* Israeli Hottie Wednesdays - Israeli Playboy Party [Video, Mostly SFW]
* Darth Vader Tries To Buy Cigarettes on Shenkin St. In Tel Aviv [Video]

Government thuggery is forcing Sandmonkey to stop blogging. State Security agents lurking around outside his house, bugging his phone, and arresting his friends - even the fact that he's gone on as long as he has is a testament to the possibility of a different Egypt. Every day it seems that this Egypt, however, recedes further and further into the distance. Gateway Pundit says the only thing that's possible to say.

References:
* Done [Rantings of a Sandmonkey]
* Sandmonkey Goes Silent [Gateway Pundit]

Previously:
* Egyptian Sandmonkey Takes Exception To TIME's Embrace Of Tariq Ramadan
* Egyptian Women's Magazines Are Ironic
* Nasrallah Crawls Into the Light, Immediately Starts Boasting

We don't care how passionate you are about your cause. It behooves even the most inflamed radical to at least avoid confirming the other side's stereotypes of you. Except Jimmy Carter is being hosted at UCI. What could be more prefect?

Here's the thing: let's say that everything that Carter says is true. Let's pretend there are Jewish and non-Jewish neo-conservatives causing American policy to lean towards Israel and against America. This is obviously asinine - Israel and the US face an identical foe, one that would gain incredible support and traction by destroying Israel. But let's pretend.

Now he's being brought in officially by the Model UN folks, but we don't think that anyone's under any impression about who his natural audience on UC Irvine's campus is - and if not his natural audience, then certainly who his most enthusiastic audience will be. Who do we know on UC Irvine's campus looking for pretexts to hate Israel?

Now, those two things being said - (a) imagining a world in which Carter was right and (b) knowing that there is a fairly radicalized population of Muslims on UCI's campus - the question remains "does the truth of what Carter's saying even matter"? Because his defense is that his fantasy world is actually true. But even if it was true - do you think that that's what UCI's lunatic Muslim population is going to hear?

Of course not. They're going to take this confirmation of a global Jewish conspiracy - a tamer version of what this guy, who they invite all the time, says. By accepting this invitation, Jimmy Carter has just agreed to fan the flames of radical anti-Semitism, on the pretext - at best - of "presenting the truth". It's like going to a meeting of rabid anti-Muslim bigots and talking about 9/11. Even if you're telling the truth, that's not what they're getting out of it. He's playing to an adoring crowd of vicious anti-Semites, and accepting adoration that comes for the worst reasons.

In addition to not becoming a caricature of oneself, one should also avoid rubbing shoulders with really despicable people. If only for appearance's sake.

References:
* Jimmy Carter to visit UC Irvine, talk with students [Today@UCI]
* Amir Abdel Malik Back On The UC Irvine Campus [MR]

Previously:
* In Just Seven Short Paragraphs, Jimmy Carter Tells 2 Lies, Makes 2 Incoherent Arguments, Takes an Anti-Israel Stance that the State Department Mocks, and Just Generally Annoys the Hell Out of Us
* Jimmy Carter: Hamas Made Up of "So-Called Terrorists"
* Carter Backs Out Of Defending His Book. That Doesn't Seem To Exactly Enhance His Credibility, Ya Know?

The Assads have been threatening to take back the Golan ever since they were disciplined like errant schoolchildren in the Six Day War. That said, Syria's recent and aggressive mobilization on Israel's border makes the recent threats seem more serious. Certainly the IDF is taking it seriously:

Or course, that assumes that Israel will have those troops available to fight that war at that time. Any war with Syria will probably be preceded by some Hezbollah stunt designed to draw out Israel's forces into Lebanon. Even if that's not how it starts, you can be quite certain that Hezbollah will make its presence felt once Israeli and Syrian forces engage each other. Syrian generals haven't been spending time in Tehran for nothing.

Of course, any situation involving an actual invasion of Israeli territory definitionally represents an existential threat. That means that the IAF is let off the leash in terms of degrading Hezbollah's infrastructure, to say nothing of what will happen to Damascus. The calculus between military force and international condemnation changes when the alternative is the destruction of Israel.

References:
* Syria Reorganizing Their Military Hezbollah-Style, Moving SCUDS To the Border To Target Israeli Population Centers [MR]
* IDF prepares for Syrian attack on Golan [JPost]
* This Summer's War With Syria, Iranian Coordination Edition [MR]

Previously:
* Syria is Hiding Weapons in Civilian Aid Convoys. Of Course They Are.
* Screw Syria
* Who's Sending Arms to Hezbollah and Syria Today?

Cross-posted to:
* Israpundit

The degree to which this pontiff can do no wrong is just getting kind of absurd at this point:

There's even a section that emphasizes how literal interpretations of holy texts risk fundamentalism. That, you'll remember, was the central issue during last year's anti-Pope riots. It's also one of the central sensibilities that seperates Judaism and Catholicism on one side from the dominant interpretations of Islam on the other side. Not that this has anything to do with the Pope's stance on anti-Semitism - we assume that just comes from being a hell of a guy.

Bonus preempt: on the Pope's stance on gay ordination.

References:
* World's Roman Catholic bishops to face anti-Semitism [JPost]
* Yes, the Pope Is Catholic - His Argument vs. Hitchens's Straw-Version of His Argument (Plus, We Ask Hitch To Come Home) [MR]
* Believing Too Little and Believing Too Much (Plus: Surprise! Pope Benedict Doesn't Hate Gays) [MR]

Previously:
* Benedict Media Coverage Wrapup
* BBC: Maybe Pope Benedict Is Not So Stupid After All
* NYT Editors Condescend to Pope Benedict XVI, Complain That His Really Good Points Hurt People's Feelings

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers

Empty airhead is one of the nicest things that the Kos Kidz will be saying about the smart, successful - and yes, beautiful - Jeri Thompson. David Brody of CBN has more:

You can go here to see a more glamorous picture. And to understand why there's going to be cognitive dissonance among the far and academic left. If you think that the disgusting comments about Malkin's body and Coulter's sexuality are bad - wait until you have to listen to ostensibly progressive grassroots activists reducing this successful career woman to her chest size. (photo via Virginia Virtucon)

References:
* Fred Thompson's Secret Weapon
* Search Results Display (042906Thompson)

Previously:
* The Ugly Left All Over
* The Ugly Left - Sarcastically Praying For the Vice President's Health Edition
* Democrats are Vulgar, Republicans are Funny

Honestly, we don't really like much of the first video. Tasha doesn't do emo particularly well, nor does it particularly suit her. As proof, we offer the second, much happier video.

See? Now wasn't that a lot more fun? Sunshine, happiness, etc etc.

Shabbat shalom everyone, and enjoy the Spring sunshine.

References:
* Tasha's World [YouTube/tasha]
* The road to milwaukee clip [YouTube/tasha]

Previously:
* Liberal Academics: Making Terrorists Listen To Bad Music Is Off-Limits
* High Tech Shabbat Cell Phone Makes Calling On Shabbat Kosher
* Video: Tasha Fridays, Two For One

We haven't seen much coverage of this story, which has Libya essentially severing diplomatic common cause with the Arab world. The FP blog had a somewhat sarcastic take on Qadhafi's boycott of the recent summit to reinvigorate the Saudi Initiative. MEMRI's own blog has had the video up for two weeks. An extended and brutal diatribe against the Arab world:

This just in: the man is a megalomaniacal lunatic. Also, he has kind of a crush on Condi, which is cute. Totally creepy, but cute.

References:
* Qaddafi's got the right idea [FP Blog]
* Libyan Leader Qadhafi: Arabs’ Time is Up; I Love (Condo)Leezza [MEMRI]
* Libyan Leader Mu'ammar Al-Qadhafi: Arab Nation's Time Is Up

Previously:
* Spirit of Peace and Brotherhood
* Bush Encourages Another Rogue To See the Error of His Ways
* We Can Be Friends... Just Don't Tell Anyone

* Filthy and disgusting:

Only in the Middle East could a much weaker force engage in such disgusting provocations with immunity. Think of the childlike machismo at work here. A primitive group of savages boast about their war crimes, knowing all the time that what keeps them safe is that they can run and hide behind the skirts of French UN peacekeepers. These are like particularly ill-behaved children, spoiled rotten as a result of being doted on by overly indulgent and extremely stupid parents.

* Hamas is doing its best to set the Middle East on fire:

Let's give Abbas some more money and troops so he can take control of the TV stations and stop this incitement. That makes a lot of sense, right?

References:
* Hezbollah erects large photograph of two kidnapped IDF soldiers [Ha'aretz]
* PALESTINIAN REGIME RESUMES PRAISING TERROR AND ABDUCTION AGAINST ISRAELIS [IMRA]

Previously:
* As Opposed to Israel, Hezbollah Actually Did Commit War Crimes
* UN Peacekeepers Begged Hezbollah to Stop Using Them As Human Shields. UN, LA Times Blame Israel Anyway.
* Associated Press: "We are all Hezbollah" is Not Anti-Israel

Cross-posted to:
* Israpundit

Fresh off of his Oslo-like nudge-nudge wink-wink about Israeli concessions, Obama continues to seem less than personally enthused about the Middle East's only stable democracy:

What he says next is a little strange. YNet - getting the transcript from who knows where - has this quote:

Get that? The quote has him saying that Israel is an important ally. But that's not what Ann Althouse has:

This is a big deal. The debate about whether the US should keep supporting Israel turns on whether it's worth the trouble of pissing off Islamists in a post-Cold War, post spheres-of-influence age. While Israel may have been worth the trouble in the past, the emerging realist-Democratic alignment is that times have changed. The Althouse transcript is certainly more consistent with the general tone that Obama's been striking. It'd be nice to get this nailed down so we can know which side Obama is on - or, at the very least, which side he's paying lip service to.

References:
* Obama: "I'm Not Saying Israel Should Have To Take Risks For Peace, But..." [MR]
* Obama: Palestinians suffer because of their leadership [YNet]
* Finishing the debate in transcript form, I give the win to Richardson. [Althouse]

Previously:
* JPost Drops Bombshell: Democrats Illegally Communicating With Hamas Terrorists
* What You Get When You Vote For Democrats - Terrorist Appeasment At The Top and Bottom Of The US House
* Democrats Renew Effort To Undermine Electronic Surveillance

This is how overeager faux sophistication filters downward through self-consciously bourgie cocktail parties, until it hardens into conventional wisdom. Allahpundit calls it "disgraceful from beginning to end", which are strong words coming from the center-right's most measured blogger.

This began with that absurd Foreign Affairs article that tried to outweigh the MB's overwhelming and fundamental commitment to sharia with half-uttered suggestions that maybe some time in the future the MB might be less genocidal (also: they love kids!) The fact that it's appearing in a popular news magazine instead of an elite foreign policy journal doesn't make the argument any less stupid. Or any less execrable.

Bonus question: Is the reapproachment between the MB and the American realist-Democratic camp being driven by media coverage of MB reform? Or are partisans in think tanks and newsrooms making excuses for policies that are being informally floated by realists and Democrats?

References:
* Mullahs Gone Mild [Newsweek]
* Newsweek shills for Islamists: This ain’t your daddy’s Muslim Brotherhood [HA]
* Muslim Brotherhood Mocks People Who Think That the "Right of Return" Is A "Two State Solution" [MR]

Previously:
* Egypt Promises To Fulfill Treaty Obligations - Later
* Persecution Of Baha'is In Egypt and Iran Fails To Gain International Attention [Video]
* Egypt Is Kind Of Insane, Dangerous

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers

It's the eve of the Sabbath and you don't need all those yucky "seductive looks" or that bare skin" distracting you from the contemplation of the Eternal. Plus, you've got Tasha and Dishka on deck and we wouldn't want to overload you. So here's a homegrown MR kittah, although we shamelessly ripped the blank picture from some board.

Only a couple days left of first round voting. If you've already voted, get a friend to vote. If you haven't voted, shame on you. You should vote, and then out of sheer get a friend to vote for us too. We're nominated in:

Best All Around - Best Large Blog
Best In Class - Best News/Current Events Blog
Best In Class - Pro-Israel Advocacy Blog
Best In Class - Best Right Wing Political Blog
Specialty - Best Contribution for our Search The Center search engine.

References:
* Israeli Hottie Becky Griffin Is Grumpy Because You're Not Voting For MR In The JIBs
* Israeli Hottie Moran Atias Reminds You: Vote For MR In The Jewish and Israeli Blog Awards

Previously:
* Monkeys
* Israeli Model Shelly Hazan Says: Vote For MR In The Jewish and Israeli Blog Awards
* Israeli Hottie Wednesdays - Hey, That Maya Buskila Girl Is Kind Of Cute [Video]

Europe's recent flirtation with Hamas is going swimmingly. Abbas:

Hamas:

Now some would react to this news by saying that it justifies the Bush Administration's efforts to bolster Abbas. We think that's stupid for a myriad of other reasons but at least it would be in the ballpark of logical. Cozying up to Hamas is just unrepentant terrorist appeasement.

Bonus Friday chaos: usually this would qualify as its own "Palestinian Civil Society Watch" post or "Palestinian Non-Civil War Watch" post or "Palestinian Civilians Get Shot and Nobody Cares Because Israel's Not Involved" post - but honestly it's just getting kind of old:

Then again, it's the Middle East, where everything old is new again. Constantly.

References:
* Palestinian policeman killed in gunfight at Rafah Crossing [JPost]
* Abbas says Hamas truce violation was exception [YNet]
* Hamas fires into Israel, declares end to 5-month truce [Boston Globe]
* Done and Done: Abbas Takes US Money and Cutting Edge Weapons, Tells the US That He's Siding With Hamas Anyway [MR]

Previously:
* White House: Sure Abbas is Powerless, But That Doesn't Mean Israel Shouldn't Give Him Land
* Palestinian Non-Civil War Watch - Hamas Judge Killed
* Iran Funding All Sides Of Palestinian Non-Civil War

Cross-posted to:
* Israpundit

On any other day, we wouldn't dare to pester you with this totally meaningless story - the result of what happens when you let inconsequential moonbats off the reservation. But it's Friday, so the humor value trumps the total lack of anything compelling or newsworthy:

It's nice that he found himself a copy of the Declaration of Independence. Now if we could only get Democrats to actually read the Constitution, we'd be halfway toward creating a utopia of harmonious bipartisanship.

What an idiot.

Oh hey, before we forget - let's get some more Democrats into office. Maybe we can all work together to make Kucinich into a nationally prominent and powerful figure. That'll be days and days of blogging material. Then our eyes and ears will start bleeding, and we'll be sad.

References:
* Kucinich announces impeachment charges against Vice President Cheney

Previously:
* Initial, Visceral Bitterness - (1) Progressives Had A Great Night. Really Fantastic.
* [Video] What You Get When You Vote For Democrats - Empowering Conspiracy Theory Wackos
* More Americans Blame Bush than Clinton for What?

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers

It's the subtle touches - the hairflipping total lack of concern for the customer, the passive-aggressive disgusted headshake, the leaving the keys in the ignition etc - that really makes this art. Mild content warning for language:

Potty mouth.

References:
* Darth Vader visits Tel Aviv [GooTube]

Previously:
* It Turns Out, There IS A Way For Israeli Drivers To Suck More. Literally.
* Flying Alitalia, Being Nice to Israeli Civil Servants, Defense Minister Peretz, and Other Ideas of Questionable Utility
* Natalie Portman and Israeli Traffic

Wow:

You should read the whole thing. It's almost a point by point summary of the complaints that were circulating around the blogosphere during the war - differences in media restrictions, transparent Hezbollah manipulation, minimization of Hezbollah war crimes, etc. The results were predictable, but the numbers are still a little shocking - the imbalance is quantitatively shocking, to say nothing of undeniable. If you don't have time to read the whole thing, here's a summary:

In fairness to Western reporters, they were just mindlessly parroting what Hezbollah told them. How were they supposed to know not to trust people who fire rockets at civilian population centers from civilian population centers. Then again, given the similarities between their coverage back then and their current coverage in Iraq, the better question might be why anyone expected them to care.

References:
* How the Media Partnered With Hezbollah: Harvard's Cautionary Report [World Politics Watch]
* Harvard: How the Media Partnered With Hezbollah [LGF]
* The American media has been co-opted by terrorists [Red State]

Previously:
* Hezbollah Probably Lost the War, But They May Never Have Been In It To Win
* Here's the Thing About the Anti-Israel Media: They Lie - Visual Version
* Hezbollah Threatens Tel Aviv - MR Gives You Tomorrow’s Pro-Hezbollah Media Spin Today

Cross-posted to:
* The Astute Bloggers

* Interesting things to note about yesterday's NBC/WSJ poll:
(1) Thompson now leads Romney by 5 points. While that's not out of the margin yet (+/- 3.1), it's consistent enough with other polls that we think Romney should j