tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-21905563716183674642024-02-20T12:02:49.808-08:00I'm Right...You're WrongAaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.comBlogger91125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-2288276583699431102009-10-22T07:27:00.000-07:002009-10-22T07:30:17.681-07:00Re-Balance Your PortfolioHere is my latest personal finance column for the Jerusalem Post:<br /><br />It's almost exactly two years since global financial markets traded at all-time high levels. These last two years have seen markets drop by 60 percent, and then stage a furious rally to recoup some of the losses. <a href="http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1256150023288&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull">Read More....</a>Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-29186368442501677232009-01-26T06:29:00.000-08:002009-01-26T06:33:05.679-08:00Guma Aguiar Gift Bolsters Nefesh B'Nefesh<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Nefesh</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">B'Nefesh</span>, the Aliyah organization announced today in a press release that they have received a very large gift.<br /><br />According to the release: " <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Nefesh</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">B'Nefesh</span> today announced the receipt of a major gift to support the organization's work in bringing Jews from the West to live in Israel. The donor <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Guma</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Aguiar</span>, a philanthropist and founder of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Leor</span> Energy, gave $8 million to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Nefesh</span> B’<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Nefesh</span> during the period ending December 31, 2008. The organization appointed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Aguiar</span>, a board member, to the position of Chairman of Finance.<br /><br />"This substantial donation demonstrates how the remarkable commitment of Jews who choose to make Israel their home even in these challenging times, is echoed and fortified by the support of generous individuals like <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Guma</span>," said Tony <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Gelbart</span>, Co-Founder and Chairman of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Nefesh</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">B'Nefesh</span>, "these vital funds strengthen Israel's human resources and ensure its future. The gift has already played a major role in helping <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Nefesh</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">B'Nefesh</span> bring a record number of newcomers to Israel in 2008."<br /><br />It's good to know that in trying economic times generous philanthropists can step <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">up</span> donate money to such worthy causes.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-54614665432602925072009-01-23T00:29:00.000-08:002009-01-23T00:31:19.995-08:00Does the Media Have a Double Standard?Got an email from reader DM, speaking to the media bias:<br /><br />Headlines On This Date 4 Years Ago:<br />"Republicans spending $42 million on inauguration while troops Die in unarmored Humvees"<br />"Bush extravagance exceeds any reason during tough economic times"<br />"Fat cats get their $42 million inauguration party, Ordinary Americans get the shaft"<br /><br />Headlines Today:<br />"Historic Obama Inauguration will cost only $120 million"<br />"Obama Spends $120 million on inauguration; America Needs A Big Party"<br />"Everyman Obama shows America how to celebrate"<br />"Citibank executives contribute $8 million to Obama Inauguration"<br />Nothing like fair & unbiased coverage of the news !!!Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-61154393904653888942009-01-22T08:31:00.000-08:002009-01-22T08:35:02.422-08:00Netanyahu Against the World: Cut TaxesThis is a guest post from <a href="http://www.israelnewsletter.com/">http://www.israelnewsletter.com/</a><br /><br />For the first time in months we have a real proposal that will help extricate Israel from the economic crisis. Instead of another proposal calling for spending billions of taxpayer dollars to build bridges that aren’t needed, PM wannabe Benjamin Netanyahu, has called for a comprehensive overhaul in the tax code calling for steep cuts in both personal and more importantly corporate income taxes.<br />Finally we have someone who understands that if citizens can keep more of there money, they can then invest, spend and save it according to their needs. The problem with all these other proposals is that with big time increases in government spending you end up taking money from individuals and they have less to create new wealth.<br />According to <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000419253&fid=942');" href="http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000419253&fid=942" target="_blank">Globes</a>: “Netanyahu said, “Over the course of four years, we will lower the top personal tax rate from today’s 46% to a level of 35%, and we will lower the top corporate tax rate from 27% to only 18%.”<br />Netanyahu added, “The tax cut will be spread over the entire term, and lead to everyone paying about 20% less than what they pay today”.<br />He also called for more privatization of government held monopolies like the electric, and water companies as well the ports.<br />With the world on fast track to socialism, it’s so refreshing to hear a leader speak with common sense, and a firm knowledge of what will actually save the economy.<br />I know that certain newly sworn in presidents believe that we all need to suffer in order to fix the economic issues that we all face, and that ‘greed’ was what caused all these problems, but ‘greed’ is what powers the economy forward. It’s not a bad thing but a good thing. the greed that Netanyahu talks about is about letting you and I keep more of what we earn, incentivize us to make more so that w can better our lives. Is that Greed? The fact is that as personal incomes rise, so do donations to charities. It appears that there is a correlation between making more and giving more. That doesn’t sound much like greed to me, and that’s the kind of personal sacrifice that should be encouraged.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-69440868578695425212009-01-20T13:24:00.000-08:002009-01-20T13:35:29.131-08:00Tzipi Livni and the Release of Gilad SchalitIt's no secret that I am not the biggest fan of PM wannabe <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Tzipi</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Livni</span>, and her speech today helped cement my view. According to the <a href="http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1232292915268&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Jpost</span></a>: <em>"I sent <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Gilad</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Schalit</span> [to the front], not personally - but he is an <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">IDF</span> soldier," the foreign minister said during a speech at the Administrative College in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Rishon</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Lezion</span>. "We sent him to defend the country and we have an obligation to bring him back. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Livni</span> added: "If <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Hamas</span> thinks it wants to get something beyond humanitarian assistance, which we will give regardless, we have someone who is very important to us, and, for me; one thing is contingent upon the other." </em><br /><em></em><br />Huh? Isn't she the foreign minister? Where has she been for the last 2.5 years? Where was she during this war with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Hamas</span>? Why did she support a unilateral cease-fire, without gaining the release of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Schalit</span>? Why didn't she set the release of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Schalit</span> as a goal of the war, to begin with?<br />And what is the humanitarian assistance to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Hamas</span> that she is <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">referring</span> to?<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Tzipi</span>, enough already. Admit to your failures and leave us alone.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-63563685938873135572009-01-15T02:29:00.000-08:002009-01-15T02:46:48.459-08:00The Expulsion From Gush Katif: Timely ReadI am not in the business of promoting books, or reading them for that matter, but with the Israeli war with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Hamas</span> I think it's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">important</span> to turn back the clock a few years and remember the days of the expulsion from Gush <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Katif</span>. Thousands of Israeli civilians, of Gush <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Katif</span>, as well as of three communities in northern Samaria, were forced out of their homes and given nothing in return.<br /><br />I came across a book called, "The Expulsion from Gush <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Katif</span>," which is a <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">compilation</span> of articles from some well-know Jewish writers about the whole lead up to and actual evacuation of the Jewish residents of the Gush <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Katif</span> settlements. <br /> <br />The Expulsion from Gush <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Katif</span> is a detailed, moving record of these events. It describes the run-up to the disengagement plan, the actual expulsion, and the events that followed.<br /><br />The link to the website is <a title="http://www.gushkatifbook.com/" href="http://www.gushkatifbook.com/">www.gushkatifbook.com</a><br /><br />It's worth the read.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-48645893246080234312009-01-12T03:58:00.000-08:002009-01-12T04:02:14.780-08:00Caution: Baby on BoardJust wanted to let you all know that with thanks and praise to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Hashem</span> , I am happy to announce that my wife gave <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">birth</span> to a spanking baby boy this morning. She did a great job, and was a real trooper.<br /><br />Mother and baby are doing well.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-64373794094113027952009-01-11T09:20:00.000-08:002009-01-11T09:23:27.003-08:00Give Hamas the Knock-Out Punch<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">IDF</span> Military Intelligence Head Maj.-Gen. Amos <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Yadlin</span> briefed the cabinet today and said that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Hamas</span> has taken a very big hit and are basically on the ropes. The <a href="http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1231424917424&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Jpost</span>.com </a>reports, <em>"According to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Yadlin</span>, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Hamas</span> had realized its error in not anticipating an Israeli response to the ongoing rocket fire, and expecting neither a ground operation nor the cold shoulder the world has shown the group.<br />He spoke of the cracks in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Hamas</span> resilience, its disconnected leadership in Syria, and its waning public support following the extensive Israeli attacks on the organization, but predicted that while <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Hamas</span> realized that it had no choice but reach a compromise with Israel, it was not about to succumb, and was still capable of striking Israel and the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">IDF</span>."</em><br /><br />Why would our leaders want to accept a cease fire now, when we could knock them out once and for all?Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-33593305857584457642009-01-09T02:42:00.000-08:002009-01-09T02:52:00.527-08:00Obama Will Negotiate With HamasIt's going to be a tough 4 years for Israel, with the Obama White House. With everyone waiting to see what the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Prez</span>. elect will do about the mid-east situation, we <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">have</span> all been greeted with his ' one president at time' answer. Not that having a serving president has stopped Obama about speaking about the economy, and a host of other issues. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Obama's</span> silence speaks loudly. To me it signals a departure of the policy of President Bush, to view the world in black and white. You are with us or <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">against</span> us. The beauty of the Bush mantra is that it provides moral clarity. There is right vs. wrong.<br /><br />Obama doesn't <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">believe</span> in this. he believes that he can speak with dictators and wow them into <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">changing</span> their firmly held views, to come over to his side. Like that's gonna happen.<br /><br />There is an <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">article</span> in the<a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/jan/08/barack-obama-gaza-hamas"> Guardian </a>that hints about what Israel is going to be up against. <em>"The incoming Obama administration is prepared to abandon George Bush's ­doctrine of isolating <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Hamas</span> by establishing a channel to the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Islamist</span> organisation, sources close to the transition team say.<br />The move to open contacts with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Hamas</span>, which could be initiated through the US intelligence services, would represent a definitive break with the Bush ­presidency's ostracising of the group. The state department has designated <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Hamas</span> a terrorist organisation, and in 2006 ­Congress passed a law banning US financial aid to the group."</em><br /><em></em><br />It's not going to be easy for Israel.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-82436171055444376202009-01-08T12:55:00.000-08:002009-01-08T12:57:36.292-08:00There is No Global WarmingHey Al Gore? What happened to the polar Ice caps melting by the end of ‘08? Hate to inform you but not only didn’t they melt, they are back to the same level as in 1979! What do you have to say about that?<br />In an article in <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.dailytech.com/Sea+Ice+Ends+Year+at+Same+Level+as+1979/article13834.htm');" href="http://www.dailytech.com/Sea+Ice+Ends+Year+at+Same+Level+as+1979/article13834.htm" target="_blank">Daily Tech</a>, “Thanks to a rapid rebound in recent months, global sea ice levels now equal those seen 29 years ago, when the year 1979 also drew to a close.<br />Ice levels had been tracking lower throughout much of 2008, but rapidly recovered in the last quarter. In fact, the rate of increase from September onward is the fastest rate of change on record, either upwards or downwards.”<br />Basically, this whole global warming hysteria is a big money grad and way to redistribute the wealth. I saw a funny comment by <a class="CommentName" id="ctl00_UserName" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.dailytech.com/CommentUser.aspx?user=179701');" href="http://www.dailytech.com/CommentUser.aspx?user=179701">mjcutri</a>, which sums up how crazy this whole issue is. Because the US added polar bears to the protected species list due to the supposed melting of the ice, <a class="CommentName" id="ctl00_UserName" onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.dailytech.com/CommentUser.aspx?user=179701');" href="http://www.dailytech.com/CommentUser.aspx?user=179701">mjcutri</a> says, ” Well, now that the sea ice is increasing, the polar bears are going to have better access to seals now. We must put seals on the protected species list to prevent their slaughter by the polar bears…”<br />He hit it on the head.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-87477004559659892242009-01-07T01:56:00.000-08:002009-01-07T02:03:37.261-08:00Hamas: Some Sick PuppiesI haven't posted about the war with <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Hamas</span>, because I have nothing much to add, but I must say that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Hamas</span>, I guess representing militant/<span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">fundamentalist</span> Islam, are some sick puppies. Shooting missiles from schools, using human shields so that they will be fired upon and then using their bodies for PR, and using mosques to store weapons and build underground tunnels is just plain sick. Why doesn't the world wake up and see what <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">fundamentalist</span> Islam is all about?<br /><br />Where are all the human rights <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">organizations</span> begging the terrorists to stop using human shields?<br /><br />For a 'religious' organization,their respect for human life is a bit lacking, don't you say?Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-65040675538302828872009-01-04T03:58:00.000-08:002009-01-04T04:04:46.810-08:00Shabbat in Netzer Hazani caravilla site in Ein TzurimThis was sent to me by a friend, updating us as to the situation for the Gush <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Katif</span> evacuees.<br /><br />The last hours have been hearing the planes and their explosions over Gaza ---it is amazing but it is so far away still the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">caravilla</span> shakes slightly. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Shabbat</span> we had many rockets falling in this general area but since we have no place to safe areas --there is no need to get hysterical to run to safe place ---and also the siren is from Kibbutz <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Ein</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Tzurim</span> and more often than not we can't hear them here in the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">caravilla</span> site. In a way as crazy as it sounds, it makes you less stressed out than when you hear the siren and feel pressure to run with your kids to safe area. I hope the people in Tel <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Aviv</span> now realize they are only 20 km. from the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Shomron</span> and they have lots of rockets that were smuggled in there --so they better forget about disengaging the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Shomron</span>. I know this may really sound crazy, but since I don't have any safe area anyway --my first reaction to hearing the shriek of the rocket and the noise of fall and explosion was -this feels like home- all I need is the sea sand and celery. Tonight it isn't too much fun for those mothers we have here in our Gush <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Katif</span> communities with a son in there fighting right now near Gush <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">Katif</span> from where they were thrown out and at the same time the mother is in a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">caravilla</span> site with no safe area to protect her young children when rockets explode nearby. Wish I could explain to those "leftists" who are supposedly for peace demonstrating in Tel <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Aviv</span> that if we would have not allowed the tunnels and the smuggling of weapons ,rockets etc and parts we wouldn't have to bomb them now. <br /><br />People who <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">truly</span> want peace must not allow weapons to reach those that lack the morality to use them properly --so that we would have no need to bomb to protect our civilians and people would not have to be. I wish that our government felt that they are sending our dear men into this war not only to protect us but to give us back this dear part of our <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Eretz</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Yisrael</span>. I know that there are very many of the soldiers fighting there are motivated also by the hope that their efforts will not only assure safety for half the country but that their <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">mesirut</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">nefesh</span> will give Am <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">Yisrael</span> back this part of our land --for only then can get closer to Shalom..<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">Shavua</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_20">tov</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_21">u'besorot</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_22">tovot</span>. PS-anyone who knows someone willing to help fund the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_23">buses</span> to take the kids out for the day to keep them sane and other special expenses we have in these challenging times --please be in touch <a title="mailto:tucker.anita@gmail.com" href="mailto:tucker.anita@gmail.com">tucker.anita@gmail.com</a>Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-65163622472606720252009-01-02T01:22:00.000-08:002009-01-02T01:32:16.214-08:00I Made The Wall Street Journal...For Poetry!Go figure. After all, I am a big shot financial advisor (well, not really but don't tell!) and I got a request to be interviewed for the Wall Street Journal. So I am thinking that this is going to be great for business. Guess what? They interviewed me for my poetry! It was on the front page! <a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123068329002444149.html#articleTabs%3Darticle">See here</a>.<br /><br />I am no Edger Allan Poe, but I am known to have made a rhyme or two. And since I write about financial poetry from time to time, the Journal happened to be doing a piece on the topic, and voila, they found me. Special thanks to <a href="http://marypilon.blogspot.com/">Mary <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Pilon</span> </a>for taking the the time to talk with me.<br /><br /><a href="http://bizzywomen.com/tag/financial-poetry/">Click here </a>for the full poem.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-46685752313958822232008-12-31T03:43:00.000-08:002008-12-31T03:48:42.200-08:00Help The Kids of Gush KatifI received this email and call for help. If you are unable to help please tell a friend.<br /><br />Dear friends ,<br />As you know we have no "safe area" in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Ein</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Tzurim</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">caravilla</span> site in which for our children to seek protection during the siren alerts when the rockets explode and fall. The <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Pikud</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">HaOref</span> has as of yesterday, closed all the nurseries, kindergartens and schools in the area and in nearby areas, probably all this week and perhaps some of next week as well.<br /><br />We would like to bus between 30 -40 children of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Netzer</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Hazani</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Gadid</span> community in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Ein</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Tzurim</span> (ages about 2.5-3yrs until about 13) for daily trips to various communities who will be willing to host entertainment for the children and perhaps some of the parents who are not working . Perhaps youth in the host community or parents could prepare activities in various age groups , perhaps local musicians , actors etc. could help ---an outdoor trip in your area ---<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">anything</span> your community can think of that will make the day pleasant for the kids and parents --would be great!<br /><br />We have two people in our community trying to coordinate such activities so please, if you have any ideas or would like to organize people in your community to try and help them lift up this glove that would be amazing -- for any ideas suggestions or willingness to do this one day<br />please contact <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Anat</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Meller</span> 054-2562609 in the morning..Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-19419323738022692532008-12-30T02:23:00.000-08:002008-12-30T02:48:42.690-08:00Best Ski Conditions Ever-- What Happened to Global Warming?With much of the <a href="http://aaronkatsman.blogspot.com/2008/12/salt-snow-and-seattle.html">US</a> and Europe blanketed by snow, and the Alps sporting the best ski conditions in a generation, the question must be asked; What happened to global warming(<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">GW</span>)? After all wasn't global warming the biggest threat to humanity. Larger than terrorism? Heck, it's so cold that I even wore a jacket to work this morning, and anyone who knows me knows that that doesn't happen all that often.<br /><br />There is a must read article in the <a href="http://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/columnists/christopherbooker/3982101/2008-was-the-year-man-made-global-warming-was-disproved.html">Telegraph</a> sent in by alert reader <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">DG</span> which discusses this issue. Christopher Booker speaks the truth in his <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">assessment</span> of what has happened with the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">GW</span> hysteria. <em>"First, all over the world, temperatures have been dropping in a way wholly unpredicted by all those computer models which have been used as the main drivers of the scare. Last winter, as temperatures plummeted, many parts of the world had snowfalls on a scale not seen for decades. This winter, with the whole of Canada and half the US under snow, looks likely to be even worse. After several years <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">flatlining</span>, global temperatures have dropped sharply enough to cancel out much of their net rise in the 20<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">th</span> century.<br />Ever shriller and more frantic has become the insistence of the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">warmists</span>, cheered on by their army of media groupies such as the BBC, that the last 10 years have been the "hottest in history" and that the North Pole would soon be ice-free – as the poles remain defiantly icebound and those polar bears fail to drown. All those hysterical predictions that we are seeing more droughts and hurricanes than ever before have infuriatingly failed to materialise."</em><br /><em></em><br />I have mentioned many times that I <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">remember</span> growing up and reading Time magazine and they had a cover story on a new Ice Age, that was approaching. Can you explain to me how in 20 years we can go from an Ice Age to Global Warming? 2 reasons. 1- If you are an environmentalist/anti-capitalist, the facts don't matter. What matters is finding any way to redistribute wealth and blame capitalism for all that's wrong with the world and how without more government controls, humans will destroy the planet. 2- For rational thinkers the answer is that human effect on temperatures is nil. Oceans, sun spots, volcanoes all play a much bigger role, than my using Right Guard spray <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">deodorant</span>. For people to think that humans are the cause of warming or cooling is just plain arrogance. Believe it or not, the planet has been around a lot longer than certain Nobel Prize winners, and will <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">continue</span> to be around long after they pass from this world.<br /><br />Funny how death comes into the argument. It sure seems to me that for many, environmentalism is a religion. I'm not saying that we need to be <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">marauders</span> of the environment but a little perspective is needed. Here in Israel we just concluded the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Chanukah</span> holiday, and as usual there we calls for people to light less candles, so as not to contribute to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">GW</span>. This is insane. In fact instead of attacking religion, maybe if they embraced their own religion the environment would be in better shape. Just a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">thought</span> but instead of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">holding</span> out on candles, I propose that no one drive their cars on the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Sabbath</span>. Something tells me that the amount of exhaust and emissions produced by 100,000 cars does more damage to the ozone layer, than a few candles lit for 8 days.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-36336365594496345352008-12-28T05:16:00.000-08:002008-12-28T05:34:30.516-08:00Chanukah in Hashmonaim: Back to Our RootsAfter the <a href="http://aaronkatsman.blogspot.com/2008/12/gilligan-and-katsmans-3-hour-tour.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Katsman</span> family </a><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Chanukah</span> party, it was off to 'where it all started' <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Hashmonaim</span> for my wife's family <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Shabbos</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Chanukah</span> fest. Again, it was really nice for everyone to be together (I'm not just saying that to stay out of my mother-in-laws doghouse!). If there was ever a reason to have Sunday as a vacation day, these holidays where the family gets together is the proof. It's just a shame that it <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">happens</span> once or twice a year.<br /><br />Special thanks to D&D for hosting all of us. I know it wasn't easy, but you did a great job. I once mentioned a new cookie business( it's my sister in laws in the interest of full disclosure) that had sprouted up, and I was able to sample some of the goodies this <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Shabbos</span>, and ....Giddy up! That was some good <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">eatin</span>'. Nothing like playing Apples to Apples while eating oatmeal cherry cookies. For those who want more information <a href="http://aaronkatsman.blogspot.com/2008/11/looking-for-yummy-cookies.html">click here</a>.<br /><br />Happy <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Chanukah.</span>Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-65344603178393559592008-12-26T02:12:00.000-08:002008-12-26T02:37:29.542-08:00Gilligan and the Katsman's: A 3 Hour TourWe all remember that fateful boating trip that the Howell's, the Professor, Mary Ann, Ginger and the crew took, decades ago, that was meant to be 3 hours but has continued for more than 30 years. Well, on our way to a family <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Chanukka</span> party we also enjoyed our own special 3 hour tour. It took us 3 hours to get to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Petach</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Tikva</span>- a trip that usually <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">takes</span> about an hour. As with Gilligan, there was some stormy weather, but instead of almost being saved by Headhunters and <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Matobins</span>, we were entertained by some of Israel's finest drivers and Na <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Nach's</span> from the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Breslov</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Chassidic</span> sect. As much of <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Jerusalem</span> was stuck in traffic, some drivers were in such hurry that they actually drove on the sidewalks, with little <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">regard</span> to pedestrians, in order to save a couple of minutes. While not particularly <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">educational</span> for our children, they thought that it was really funny. Speaking of funny, as we sat stuck in traffic on the Jerusalem-Tel <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">Aviv</span> highway, a group of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Beslover</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Chassidim</span> jumped out of their van on the side of the highway and started <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">dancing</span>. We opened up the window and got a special postcard from them. The kids thought this was hilarious.<br /><br />Well, we finally arrived, a full 2.5 hours late, but the kids were all in pretty good spirits, all things considered.<br /><br />Special thanks to my brother and sister-in-law for hosting the family party. It's always great when we all are able to get together, and with so many kids it's certainly not easy to host such a gathering. Thanks to both of you for opening up your home, everyone had a really good time. It was also a special event as it marked the first time all of the siblings were together for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Chanukka</span> in about 31 years, and the first time ever in Israel. Let's hope brother AIK decides to settle in the holy land.<br /><br />BTW- Our family was never big on giving presents for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Chanukka</span>. <a href="http://mominisrael.blogspot.com/2008/12/hanging-stockings-american-chanukah.html">Mother In Israel </a>has a great post about the custom(?) of hanging stockings for the holiday.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-13656513951087826692008-12-24T09:06:00.000-08:002008-12-24T09:43:01.631-08:00Salt, Snow, and SeattleSo<em> </em>I call my father yesterday to see how he has been coping with all the snow in Seattle. Due to global warming(?), Seattle has experienced a full week of snow and freezing temperatures, the likes of which it has not seen in decades. My father told me that he basically ran out of food yesterday, as he has been stuck at home because the city has done a lousy job of clearing the streets. He had no choice but to <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">drive</span> to the local supermarket even though there was still plenty of ice, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">because</span> he needed some food.<br /><br />Why has it taken a week for the city to clear major <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">arterials</span> of snow? It wasn't because they were unprepared rather, the City of Seattle refuses to use salt to clear snowy and icy roads. Why you ask? <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Because</span> Seattle is the hub of the environmental movement, and the greens are worried about what salt runoff would do to Puget Sound(which happens to be salt water.)<br /><br />According to an article in the <a href="http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008551284_snowcleanup23m.html">Seattle Times</a>: <em>" The icy streets are the result of Seattle's refusal to use salt, an effective ice-buster used by the state Department of Transportation and cities accustomed to dealing with heavy winter snows.<br />"If we were using salt, you'd see patches of bare road because salt is very effective," Wiggins said. "We decided not to utilize salt because it's not a healthy addition to Puget Sound."<br />By ruling out salt and some of the chemicals routinely used by snowbound cities, Seattle has embraced a less-effective strategy for clearing roads, namely sand sprinkled on top of <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">snowpack</span> along major <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">arterials</span>, and a chemical <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">de</span>-<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">icer</span> that is effective when temperatures are below 32 degrees."</em><br /><em></em><br />It's not as if Seattle is like Minneapolis or some other city which is hit with snow all the time. It rarely snows more than once or twice a winter. How could a little salt cause any <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">environmental</span> damage? Is it worth citizens being stuck at home, and elderly potentially starving or freezing to death because of some ridiculous environmental claim? What could a little salt possibly do to the environment?<br /><br />I think that the end of the article makes it clear: " <em>Although the city had plowed 29 of its 36 major routes, "nothing is clear," <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Kuck</span> said late Monday afternoon. "This is a difficult and challenging situation that's going to take us a long time to recover from."<br />Wiggins, of Seattle's transportation department, said the city's 27 trucks had plowed and sanded 100 percent of Seattle's main roads, and were going back for second and third passes.<br />"It's tough going. I won't argue with you on that," he said. But here in Seattle, "we're sensitive about everything we do that impacts the environment."</em><br /><em></em><br />Maybe that's the problem with the environmental movement. They mean well, but have no perspective. They are so 'sensitive to the environment' that <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">they</span> have lost common sense!Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-66475038649101495982008-12-23T00:02:00.000-08:002008-12-23T00:02:01.526-08:00Israel’s MediGuide Bought For $300 million by St. JudeThanks to <a href="http://israelnewsletter.com/">Israelnewsletter.com </a>for contributing this story.<br /><br />What would you say if I told you that there was a company that developed GPS-like technology for the human body? You’d probably say that that is really cool. Well leave it to Israeli ingenuity and creativity to create such a cutting-edge technology. In fact it’s such an interesting technology that St. Jude Medical(<a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/finance.yahoo.com/q?s=stj');" href="http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=stj" target="_blank">STJ</a>) has bought the Israeli company for $300m.<br /><br />In a market with very little M&A, this makes 2 acquisitions of Israeli companies in as many months. Johnson & Johnson(<a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/finance.yahoo.com/q?s=jnj');" href="http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=jnj" target="_blank">JNJ</a>) bought Omrix Biopharmaceuticals(<a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/finance.yahoo.com/q?s=omri');" href="http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=omri" target="_blank">OMRI</a>) as well. This shows that multi-nationals would rather outsource their R&D than develop it in-house. if this trend continues, it could get very interesting for Israeli hi-tech.<br /><br />MediGuide was founded in 2000 by Gera Strommer, president and CEO, and Uzi Eichler, vice president technology, as a spin-off from <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.elbit.co.il/');" href="http://www.elbit.co.il/" target="new">Elbit Systems</a> (Nasdaq: <a href="javascript:viewInstrument(">ESLT</a>), which owns 41.3% of the company, and with backing from Israeli venture capital fund <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.vitalifevc.com/');" href="http://www.vitalifevc.com/" target="new">Vitalife</a>.<br /><br />According to <a onclick="javascript:pageTracker._trackPageview('/outgoing/www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000409781&fid=942');" href="http://www.globes.co.il/serveen/globes/docview.asp?did=1000409781&fid=942" target="_blank">Globes</a>: <em>“MediGuide has developed technology and products for minimally invasive navigation and tracking within the human body. Its devices are for use in cardiac procedures and catheterization. The system consists of sensors mounted on a catheter introduced into the body, with the locating done on the basis of the distance of the sensors from several sources of magnetic radiation, with an accuracy of fractions of a millimeter.<br />The information from the sensors is combined with an image of the interior of the body, in a way that is similar to the way locating using a GPS device works. Since in catheterization or other invasive procedure, the human body undergoes changes, the device measures physiological indications from the body breathing, EKG, and so on and amends the picture accordingly.”</em><br /><br />What will they think of next?Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-67211983765903664402008-12-22T04:25:00.000-08:002008-12-22T04:39:24.655-08:00Zygi Wilf and His MenorahSo I am up at 2am watching the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Minnesota</span> Vikings fumble the game away to the Atlanta Falcons. With about 2-3 minutes left in the game the cameras focus in on the owners box. In it you see a lit Menorah. I am not sure how <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">many of</span> you saw this but that's way cool.<br /><br />I can't stand the Vikings, mostly because two of my friends, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">HH</span> and DB are from <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Minnesota</span> and I wouldn't want to give them the satisfaction of me liking their team. But way to go <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Zygi</span>. Lighting the Menorah at the proper time, and then having it displayed for the whole nation to see is the true <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Mitzvah</span> of publicizing the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Chanuka</span> miracle.<br /><br />With all eyes on Jewish fraudster <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Bernard</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Madoff</span>, it's <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">definitely</span> refreshing to see a Jew do <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">something</span> positive.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-10024281334441239242008-12-21T05:30:00.000-08:002008-12-21T05:37:55.800-08:00Livni And HamasMy favorite pol, PM wannabe <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Tzipi</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Livni</span> is at it again, saying that under her rule, she will topple the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Hamas</span> in Gaza. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Humm</span>.... Isn't this the same <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Livni</span> who allowed <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">Hamas</span> to run in elections a few years ago, and vastly underestimated their popularity, and was 'shocked' when they took over. isn't this the <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">same</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Livni</span> who has travelled the world trying to limit support for <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Hamas</span>.<br /><br />Nice, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">Tzipi</span>, very successful on all fronts.<br /><br />Now you expect us to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">believe</span> that you and only <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">you</span> can stop the <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_12">Hamas</span>. Gimme a break!<br /><br />According to the <a href="http://www.jpost.com/servlet/Satellite?cid=1228728273948&pagename=JPost%2FJPArticle%2FShowFull"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_13">Jpost</span></a>: <em>"The people of Israel are threatened, missiles are falling," she said. "I won't say what moves should be made. There is no calm in <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_14">Hamas</span> controlled Gaza. Israel, and a government under my leadership, would topple <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_15">Hamas</span> in Gaza with military, economic and diplomatic means." </em><br /><em></em><br />What nonsense. Hello, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_16">Tzipi</span>. Aren't you already the chief diplomat of Israel? You <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_17">have</span> failed in your role as FM, and now you want us to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_18">believe</span> that that makes you qualified to be head of state?<br /><br />I don't think voters are that <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_19">gullible</span>.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-27257915671190354952008-12-19T01:54:00.000-08:002008-12-19T02:16:43.844-08:00The Orthodox Female Michael JordanThanks to <a href="http://newrulesofinvesting.com/">New Rules of Investing </a> for alerting me to this story.<br /><br />We all remember the headlines about the Jewish Michael Jordan, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Tamir</span> Goodman. Well forget about him <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">because</span> we now have an orthodox Jewish female, who is creating a buzz of her own. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">Naama</span> <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">Shafir</span>, an Israeli from around <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Tiberias</span>, is the freshman star of the University of Toledo women’s basketball team, and the first Orthodox Jewish female to ever get a sports <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">scholarship</span> to an NCAA school.<br /><br />According to a feature in the Jewish Week: <em>"As a Sabbath-observant, kosher-eating minority of one on the Toledo campus, <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Shafir</span> is providing an education about the customs and requirements of Orthodox Judaism, and the team is serving as a model of religious tolerance.<br />Her favorite food, according to a player’s profile in the Rockets’ media guide, is “kosher food.”<br />“My teammates ask a lot of questions,” <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">Shafir</span> says. “I explain.”<br />Alerted to the symbols of kosher certification, the other young women on the team, Christians, many of them African Americans, go out of their way to find products with the Orthodox Union’s <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">OU</span> symbol when buying snacks, she says.<br />With the guidance of her rabbi in Israel, who advised her when she was the sole Orthodox girl on her national team a few years ago, she has worked out an MO that allows her to follow Jewish law while playing at the highest level of college hoops."</em><br /><em></em><br />I think this is very cool. She is a great role model for Jewish girls in the US. Not quite your typical <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">JAP</span>! What's so interesting is that the Israeli media hasn't picked up on the story. When they do, I can't wait to hear the reaction; <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">especially</span> from the Orthodox community. I can imagine that while some will be proud and supportive, there will be many other prominent Orthodox Jewish leaders who use the word 'disgrace' 'not modest'- just to name a few.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-83525027285733861972008-12-18T04:49:00.000-08:002008-12-18T05:14:33.718-08:00Obamonics Hits New York: 137 New TaxesDon't worry Obama will save. Don't you know, he is all about <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">change</span> you can <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">believe</span> in. Well Americans better wake up, <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">because</span> if what just <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">happened</span> in New York is any indication, 'Change' is about all you will have after 4 years of Obama.<br /><br />The Gov. Paterson of NY, presented his tax increase plan which is thought to raise over $121 billion in <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">revenues</span>, and taxes <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">everything</span> under the sun.<br /><br /><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">According</span> to the <a href="http://www.nypost.com/seven/12172008/news/regionalnews/govs_tax__spend_shocker_144629.htm">NY Post</a>: " The Draconian plan calls for:<br />* An "<span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">iTunes</span> tax" of 4 percent on videos, music or pictures downloaded from the Internet.<br />* A 4 percent tax on taxi, limo and bus rides. That means a $10 cab ride would cost 40 cents more.<br />* A 4 percent entertainment tax on tickets to movies, concerts and sporting events. That would add nearly 50 cents to a $12 movie ticket or $1.80 to the cheapest $44.50 seat at a <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_8">Knicks</span> game.<br />* The tax on beer increases 24 cents per gallon, or more than double the current rate, which means about 30 cents a case.<br />* An 18 percent tax on <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_9">non-diet</span> soft drinks, which aims to reduce child obesity. A $1.50 can of Pepsi would then cost at least 25 cents more. "<br /><br />Hello. My hunch is that much of the planned increase revenue take will never materialize. I bet that someone will find a way to get around the download music tax. What about the tax on non-diet soft drinks? People will start drinking diet drinks.<br /><br />For New York, which has seen people leave the state in droves, this new tax increase plan will function like a kick in the b***. Why on earth would someone want to stay there.<br /><br />I hate to think what will happen if this <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_10">brilliant</span> plan becomes <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_11">national</span> policy during an Obama administration.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-38554478493750935262008-12-17T02:22:00.000-08:002008-12-17T02:25:28.834-08:00What Others Are saying About Madoff ScandalFor those looking to see what other bloggers are saying about the Bernard Madoff $50 billion scandal, check out a blog roundup over at <a href="http://israelnewsletter.com/2008/12/17/blog-roundup-on-madoff-ponzi-scheme/">Israelnewsletter.com</a>.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2190556371618367464.post-61410459022416999622008-12-16T04:15:00.000-08:002008-12-16T04:28:36.614-08:00Do We Need more Regulation In Lieu of Madoff Fraud?As if the pro government regulation movement needs another push, the <a href="http://http://aaronkatsman.blogspot.com/2008/12/huge-alleged-ponzi-scheme-nabs-madoff.html">Bernard <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Madoff</span> </a>$50 billion <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_1">Ponzi</span> scheme is sure to usher in more calls for more <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_2">government</span> regulation. With banks being nationalized, and the auto industry soon to follow suit, the political-economic <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_3">pendulum</span> has swung 180 degrees. Government, which in most of these cases is the cause of the problems, is being looked to, to be the savior of the entire global economic system.<br /><br />Now with the <a href="http://aaronkatsman.blogspot.com/2008/12/jewish-philanthroy-to-be-hit-as-result.html"><span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_4">Madoff</span></a> <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_5">fraud</span>, we are going to hear calls of more regulation of the securities industry. But is that going to solve the problem? It's sort of stupid to legislate more laws, when those on the books are not being enforced. After all, the <a href="http://aaronkatsman.blogspot.com/2008/12/is-madoff-fraud-going-to-cause-anti.html">SEC</a> should have been all over <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_6">Madoff</span> Securities long ago, but they dropped the ball.<br /><br />Regulation is not the answer. There is more than enough regulation to <span class="blsp-spelling-corrected" id="SPELLING_ERROR_7">discourage</span> anyone from setting up a securities company. What is needed though is for the current regulators to actually do what they are mandated to do.Aaron Katsmanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14923993901401815912noreply@blogger.com0