Israel's Travel Warning

From Yahoo:

“Israel issues global travel warning, telling citizens 'to avoid displaying any outward signs of their Israeli or Jewish identity when traveling'”

(A Star of David necklace and a blue ribbon, a symbol of support for the safe return of hostages held by Hamas.)

The government of Israel issued a global travel warning for all of its citizens in response to what it said was a rise in antisemitic violence in the wake of Israel’s military response to the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas militants. “Today, the National Security Council and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs put out an unusual global travel warning. We are calling on all citizens of Israel to exercise heightened caution when traveling anywhere abroad,” Israeli Government spokesman Eylon Levy said in a message posted to social media on Friday. “We are also asking citizens — and truly I cannot believe that we are doing this — we are asking all citizens to avoid displaying any outward signs of their Israeli or Jewish identity when traveling anywhere in the world,” Levy continued. “If you must travel, please make sure that you have the numbers of emergency services and the local Israeli embassies on speed dial. Keep away from anti-Israel, pro-jihad protests and remain alert and vigilant about your surroundings at all times.” In a separate post Friday, the feed on X operated by the Office of the Prime Minister of Israel said that there has been a “significant rise in antisemitism and anti-Israel incitement, alongside life-threatening violent attacks on Israelis and Jews around the world” following the Oct. 7 attack.

Global threats

(People shout antisemitic slogans at an airport in Makhachkala, Russia, Oct. 30.)

Last week, a violent mob of more than 100 Russian citizens in the Caucasus region stormed an airport in the republic of Dagestan hunting for Israeli citizens after a rumor was spread that a flight was arriving from Tel Aviv, Israel, France24 reported. In his message, Levy singled out “Arab and Middle Eastern states, the Northern Caucasus and countries bordering Iran,” but said the government was “urging all Israelis to consider whether any foreign travel anywhere in the world is necessary at this dangerous moment.” More than 1,400 people, most of them civilians, were killed during Hamas’s brutal incursion into Israel on Oct. 7. In the raid, more than 200 people were taken hostage and brought back to Gaza. Since then, Israeli military attacks on Gaza, where Hamas fighters and Palestinian civilians are enmeshed, have killed more than 9,000 people, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, and laid waste to whole neighborhoods. The violence has caused further divisions among U.S. lawmakers, with some Democrats calling for a pause in Israel’s military actions in Gaza and other Republicans expressing the view that Israel should press forward with its campaign against Hamas. A wave of antisemitic incidents have been reported in recent weeks in Paris, where the killing of a teacher last month was deemed an act of Islamic terrorism by government officials. Jewish university students in the United Kingdom have reported hiding yarmulkes and Star of David necklaces for fear of being targeted, the Telegraph reported.

Unease in the United States

(Posters on the campus of New York University show images of people kidnapped by Hamas have been vandalized and covered with pro-Palestinian graffiti)

In the U.S., tensions between pro-Israeli and pro-Palestinain demonstrators have roiled college campuses. Citing antisemitic threats, Cornell University canceled classes on Friday. On the streets of New York, people have clashed over the posting and removal of posters seeking to draw attention to hostages still held in Gaza by Hamas. Last week, the Anti-Defamation League said it had recorded 312 antisemitic incidents between Oct. 7 and Oct. 23 compared with just 64 incidents over the same period in 2022. The new incidents were attributable “to the war in Israel and Gaza,” the group said. The Council on American-Islamic Relations reported receiving 774 complaints linked to Islamophobia between Oct. 7 and Oct. 24, the highest number since December 2015, when then presidential candidate Donald Trump announced a plan to ban Muslims from entering the U.S.

FBI Director Christopher Wray warned Wednesday that the Hamas attacks and U.S. support of Israel could lead to terrorism in this country. “Here in the United States, our most immediate concern is that violent extremists — individuals or small groups — will draw inspiration from the events in the Middle East to carry out attacks against Americans going about their daily lives,” he told the Senate Homeland Security Committee, NBC News reported. “That includes not just homegrown violent extremists inspired by a foreign terrorist organization, but also domestic violent extremists targeting Jewish or Muslim communities.” In an intelligence assessment released this week, the Department of Homeland Security said antisemitic and Islamophobic incidents in the U.S. had risen since Oct. 7, and warned that the Israel’s ground invasion of Gaza would likely result in another uptick, ABC News reported. “Targeted violence attacks may increase as the conflict progresses,” the report said.

^ It is a complete and utter disgrace and shame that Jews have to feel threatened and are even attacked for simply wearing a Religious Symbol like the Star of David.

It sickens me to my core that these Anti-Jewish Terrorists across the US and around the World are doing these Pogroms on Innocent Men, Women and Children. ^

https://www.yahoo.com/news/israel-issues-global-travel-warning-telling-citizens-to-avoid-displaying-any-outward-signs-of-their-israeli-or-jewish-identity-when-traveling-214712650.html

Skills

 

400%

Jews make up 2% of the US Population, but account for 60% of the Hate Crime Victims.

From October 7-November 1, 2023 Attacks on Jews across the United States has gone up 400%.

This is not a Jewish issue. This is an American issue.

We ALL need to do everything we can to stop the Anti-Jewish Terrorists from committing their crimes on Innocent American Men, Women and Children.

Appreciate Everything

 

Why Care?

You may be asking yourself “Why am I seeing so much about Israel and the Jews? He’s not even Jewish.”

You are right  - I’m not Jewish. I am Roman Catholic and even went to Catholic School from 1^st-5^th Grade.

I believe (and have been taught by my Mom) that whether anyone is personally attacking you or your beliefs or not you should always stand-up to help others.

 

 When I was in 6th Grade in Germany (30 years ago next month) one of my Teachers assigned each of us a Winter Holiday to do a presentation on. She gave me Chanukah. While I was giving my presentation to the class she flipped-out and started yelling that Chanukah could not have a "CH" in it (only an "H.) She gave me an F and told me to redo it all (Note: I had never had an F before then.)

I went to my Mom's Office after School to complain (about my Grade.) My Mom's Friend and Co-Worker - who happened to be Jewish - told me she had a book at her house where Chanukah was spelt with a "CH" on the cover. She gave it to me and I brought the book and the same poster board I had used for my first presentation to class and tried to redo the same presentation.

When the Teacher again complained about the "CH" I showed her the book and told her my Jewish Friend had given it to me. The Teacher went off. She threw the book across the classroom and started yelling about how it didn't matter how Chanukah was spelt since it was a made-up holiday and shouldn't be celebrated. She then went on about how the Jews were evil and against God's plan and were never to be trusted. She kept my F and threw me out of class.

I walked right to my Mom's Office and was very upset. I told her what happened and she got right on the phone with the Principal and when the School tried to cover things up my Mom got the Stars and Stripes Newspaper involved as well as our Members of Congress.

In the end (because of all the attention my Mom brought to this incident) the Teacher was found to be highly Anti-Semitic and made to go to the Dachau Concentration Camp the next school year - not as a Chaperone, but as a Student. My F was turned into an A (after another Teacher, the Principal, the Base Commander and my Mom heard me give my Chanukah presentation.)

I have to admit that when I was in 6th Grade I was more concerned with getting the F than anything else.

My Mom explained what happened and why it was wrong to be anti-Jewish and why I needed to focus on that part of the problem as it was the most important part and not the F part.

Every since then I have always spelt Chanukah with a "CH" to remind me of what I did and didn't do when confronted with Anti-Semitism.

 

It was also while living in Germany at this time that I really got involved with learning about the Holocaust (from my Mom and from School.)

 Living in Germany  - where the Grandmothers and Grandfathers walking the Streets around me could easily have been Mass Murderers in the 1940s. We had even had a “Game” of going up to anyone over 60 and shout at them in English “What did you do during the War?” as well as visiting many of the Holocaust-Related places like Concentration Camps, etc. made Me become more aware of how horrible the Holocaust truly was. It became more personal rather than just reading about it in a book.

 

In High School I met several Holocaust Survivors  - going down to New York City to see them with my Mom.

 

After College I worked for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington DC. I got to meet many Holocaust Survivors (including spending 4 minutes with the Nobel Peace Prize Winner Eli Wiesel where he even shook my hand and signed my copy of his book.)

While there I also got to see Original Documents and Artifacts from the Death Camps, the Jewish Victims and the German Murderers.

 

When I lived in Russia both times I saw first-hand Anti-Jewish Violence. The first time I lived in Russia in 2002 I was just learning the language and so had my Girlfriend go with me to a Synagogue in Yaroslavl – the Synagogue had been bombed in the 1990s and so was cautious about allowing Outsiders in (especially my Russian Girlfriend – even as my Translator.)

I went back one more time that trip  and when I was walking to the Trolleybus  to go home some Russians came up to me and started screaming at me, in Russian. I didn’t understand everything they were saying but kept hearing the Russian word “Жид” and the German Phrase “Juden Raus!”

I knew what they both meant: “Yid” and “Jews Out!”

They assumed that since they had seen me walk out of the Synagogue that I was Jewish. I told them – in my broken Russian – That I was American. That I was Catholic. They understood American, but not Catholic so I blessed myself 3 times like Russian Orthodox Christians do and they understand and let me go.

In 2004 when I lived there a 2^nd time – by myself since I was fluent in Russian by then – and learned about the Anti-Jewish Pogroms and the History of the Russian Jews in Czarist Times, in Soviet Times and in Modern-Day Russia (and I was learning about it from Russian Jews many of whom told me of their personal experiences with Official Soviet and Russian Anti-Semitism as well as Attacks from Ordinary Russians against them.

Another Anti-Semitic Event I personally experienced was on a Russian Bus going from Saint Petersburg to the Peterhof Palace. I saw a group of Russian Men and Boys yelling, screaming and hitting Orthodox Jews in their Black Religious Clothing.

My Mom always wanted to go to Israel and we nearly went together once, but she was placed in the ICU and so we had to cancel our trip.

I was able to go to Israel in 2017 with my Sister and got to go to many wonderful places from the Bible (both the Old Testament and the New Testament) as well as to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Documentation Center and Museum in Jerusalem.

 

Sadly, I am not always proud of how I did or did not handle some of the things I mentioned above.

I am not proud that when I was in the 6^th Grade I cared more about getting a “F” than about standing-up to my Teacher’s Anti-Semitism.

I am not proud that when I lived in Yaroslavl in 2002 and was confronted by Skinheads that I resorted to saying I wasn’t Jewish just so I could leave.

I am not proud that when I saw the Russians attacking the Orthodox Jews in Saint Petersburg I didn’t do more to stop the Tour Bus to help them.

 

I am proud that my Mother took the time to explain to me after each event what was wrong with how I reacted and what was wrong about the Anti-Semitic Incident itself (I had called and e-mailed my Mom back in the States after the Russian Incidents.)

She was a very religious Roman Catholic and believed in helping anyone she could regardless of their Religion or anything else. The second to last thing she said to me right before she passed in 2014 was “Do Good” which is what she had been telling me and showing me herself ever since I was little.

 

I am doing everything I can now to call out the Bigots, the Anti-Semites, the Jew-Haters, the Anti-Jewish Terrorists because what is happening in Israel, in Canada, in France, in the United Kingdom, in Germany, in Russia, in Poland, in Spain, in Egypt, in Lebanon, in Iran, in Colombia, in Australia, in the United States and in most of the rest of the World is wrong.

I will never fully understand what Anti-Semitism feels like since I am not Jewish, but I am doing my best to learn as much as I can about it and try to stop it wherever I can.

 

It is not an Israeli Problem.

It is not a Jewish Problem.

It is OUR PROBLEM!

Every Generation

 

Tel Aviv, Israel in 1949.

The Parents in this picture are mostly Holocaust Survivors who also fought in Israel’s War for Independence in 1948 and in Israel’s Suez War in 1956.

The Babies in the Strollers fought in Israel’s Six Day War in 1967 and in Israel’s Yom Kippur War in 1973.

The Babies’ Children are currently fighting against Hamas in 2023.

In Israel every Man and Woman from every Generation has to defend their homes and their Families.

If Israel loses 1 War the country will be “wiped off the map” and its people “driven into the sea” as Hamas and others have officially proclaimed. 

I may be Catholic, but I stand with Israel. I stand with the Jews!

7 In 10

 

79: Bergen-Belsen Arrival

79 years ago today (November 3, 1944) the Cattle Train from the Auschwitz-Birkenau Death Camp in German-Occupied Poland arrived near Bergen in Germany.

(Margot and Anne Frank before going into Hiding – 1941 – German-Occupied the Netherlands.)

A 4 mile march through woods and heathland waited the Prisoners before they arrived to the Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp at Luneburger Heide.

On arrival in the Camp the Prisoners were given a piece of cloth with a new Camp number to be worn on their clothes. The numbers on their arms from Auschwitz no longer counted, because every Camp had its own Registration System.

Anne Frank (who was 14 years old) and Margot Frank (who was 18 years old) were sent to the Tent Camp, an area on flat ground with around fifteen tents. There was no lighting in this section of the Camp and the water supply was primitive.

”We saw two thin, bald figures that looked like freezing baby birds. We fell into each other’s arms and cried. It was Margot and Anne Frank /.../ the four of us went past the Barracks to the parade ground. We saw several big tents there. They looked like circus tents. We were assigned to one of them and lay down on the straw. We cuddle up with each other under our blankets.” Lien Brilleslijper.

Anne and Margot Frank had been in the Auschwitz Death Camp from September 3, 1944 (on the last Cattle Train from Westerbork in German-Occupied the Netherlands) until they left for Bergen-Belsen on October 30, 1944.

Anne Frank was briefly reunited with two Friends, Hanneli Goslar and Nanette Blitz, who were also confined in the Camp. Blitz had been moved from the Sternlager to the same section of the Camp as Anne on December 5, 1944, while Goslar had been held in the Sternlager since February 1944.

Both Goslar and Blitz survived the War.

Hannah Pick-Goslar moved to Israel in 1947 and died on October 22, 2022 at 93 years old.

Nanette Blitz Konig is still alive at 94 years old and has lived in Brazil since 1953.

Margot Frank died at the Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp in February or Marcg 1945 from Typhus. She was buried in a Mass Grave. She was 18 or 19 years old.

Anne Frank died at the Bergen-Belsen Concentration Camp in February or March 1945 – a few days after her Sister, Margot, from a Typhus Epidemic that spread through the camp, killing 17,000 Prisoners. She was buried in a Mass Grave. She was 15 years old.

The British liberated Bergen-Belsen in April 1945 -  a month after their deaths.

Anne and Margot’s Mother, Edith, was left at the Auschwitz Death Camp when her Daughters were sent to Bergen-Belsen. Edith was Selected for the Gas Chamber, but ran away from the group Selected to die and stole the Registration Number of someone who had already died. She died on January 6, 1945 (3 weeks before Auschwitz was liberated and 10 days before her 45^th Birthday.)

She's Here

 

Holiday Baking Contests

I watched all the different Halloween Baking Contests: "Halloween Baking Championship," "Halloween Wars." "Halloween Cookie Challenge," "The Big Bake: Halloween," "Haunted Gingerbread Showdown" and "Halloween Cake-Off."

 Starting tonight I move to Christmas Baking Contests: "Christmas Cookie Challenge," "Holiday Baking Championship," "The Great British Baking Show: Holidays," "Holiday Gingerbread Showdown," "The Big Bake: Holidays," Christmas Cake-Off" and "Holiday Wars."

Before Thanksgiving

 

Meta Charging

From Yahoo:

“Meta to Charge Monthly Fees For Using Facebook and Instagram: What to Know”

Meta (META) announced today (Oct. 30) that it will charge Facebook and Instagram users in Europe a subscription fee for an ad-free experience starting in November. The subscriptions will cost €9.99 ($ 10.60) per month for web and €12.99 ($13.79) for mobile apps. Initially, one subscription will cover all accounts linked to its owner. But starting March 2024, users will have to pay an extra fee for each additional account, which will be €6 ($6.37) per month for web and €8 ($8.49) for mobile. The rollout came just days after Meta CFO Susan Li shared an update on the company’s European ad strategy.

Meta said it introduced the subscriptions to comply with European Union regulations. In May, The E.U. fined Meta $1.3 billion for violating its data privacy rules by transferring user data in Europe to servers in the U.S. Following a legal battle, the E.U. effectively barred the social platform from harvesting user data across its platforms for targeted ads without user consent.

To resume collecting user data, Meta said in August it would make changes to comply with Europe’s General Data Protection Regulation around consent issues. “We’ll continue to advocate for an ad-supported internet, even with our new subscription offering in the E.U., EEA [European Economic Area] and Switzerland. But we respect the spirit and purpose of these evolving European regulations, and are committed to complying with them,” Meta said.

During Meta’s third-quarter earnings call last week, Bank of America analyst Justin Post asked Meta executives about the company’s potential subscription offering and GDPR compliance issue in Europe. CFO Susan Li didn’t reveal much, but said the company was working on “a consent model” for ads in Europe. Even though Meta’s new subscription plan for Europe resulted from a legal battle, entirely subscriptions-based social platforms that used to be free may be something to keep an eye on.

X, formerly known as Twitter, is testing a $1 yearly fee for new users in the Philippines and New Zealand to access basic functions such as reposting, liking and replying to posts. X owner Elon Musk said this is the best way to get spam accounts and bots off the platform. In the past, Musk has floated the idea of making X a completely paywalled platform.

Meta reported an increase in ad revenue for the quarter ended September. Ad revenue rose 23 percent in the quarter from a year ago and showed strides since 2021. Li explained on the earnings call that the company is still cautious about what ad sales will look like going into the fourth quarter because of the ongoing Israel-Hamas war.

^ I don’t see people anywhere (Europe, etc.) paying for X, Facebook or Instagram. They will just move to a new free site. ^

https://finance.yahoo.com/news/meta-charge-monthly-fees-using-235743660.html

300,000

^ Russia has just surpassed having 300,000 of their Soldiers killed in Ukraine since their Invasion started the War on February 24, 2022.

This Number doesn’t include the Russian Soldiers wounded or the Russian Soldiers killed from 2014-2022 (in Crimea or Donbas.)

Russia is failing in Ukraine (among other places – Nagorno-Karabakh, Syria, etc.) and has resorted to Drafting even more 18-22 year olds twice a year than before 2022.

Russia has also resorted to Mobilizing any Russian Man from 23-75.

All of these Russians (Drafted or Mobilized) get 1-2 weeks of training on Soviet Guns and Weapons (since Russia is very low on Modern Weapons) before they are sent to Ukraine and used as Cannon Fodder.

When a Russian Soldier is killed in Ukraine the Russian Military often leaves them behind.

Their Families have to hire Private Contractors to go into a Warzone and bring their Loved Ones back so they can be buried.

Also, if any of their Family Members openly talks about their Loved Ones death they are sent to a Forced Labor Penal Colony (Russia’s Modern-Day Gulag) for up to 15 years.

These 300,000 Russian Soldiers are not dying in a heroic way, but helping Putin and his Nazi Zs carry-out their War Crimes (raping, torturing and murdering Innocent Men, Women and Children as well as Kidnapping Innocent Civilians including Children and sending them to Infiltration Camps inside Russia to have the “Ukrainian kicked-out of them.)

Here’s to Russia’s defeat in Ukraine. ^

What Would You Do?

Hamas and other Terrorist Groups have fired over 8,000+ missiles from Gaza into Israel since October 7, 2023 when they carried out their Terrorist Attacks on Innocent Foreign and Israeli Men, Women and Children inside Israel.

The Iron Dome has done a lot to shoot the ones headed towards populated areas down.

1.431 have died in Israel, 5,431 have been wounded in Israel and 245 Foreigners and Israelis have been taken Hostage by Hamas since October 7^th.

Any other country in the World would do much worse to any Terrorist Group that attacked their country and killed their citizens.

Israel has shown restraint and compassion while at the same time going after the Terrorists that attacked them and govern Gaza.

1930s Vs 2023

(The 8th Night of Chanukah at Rabbi Akiva Boruch Posner’s House across from the Local Nazi Headquarters in Kiel, Germany in the 1930s.)

First they came for the Women and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t a Woman.

Then they came for the Gays and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t Gay.

Then they came for the Interracial Couples and I didn’t speak out because I’m not in an Interracial Relationship.

Then they came for the Ukrainians and I didn’t speak out because I’m not Ukrainian.

Then they came for the Jews and I didn’t speak out because I wasn’t Jewish.

Then they came for Me and there was no one left to speak out.

This may seem like it was 80+ years ago, but in reality Anti-Jewish Attacks are happening today around the World – in Germany, in the UK, in France, in Russia, in Egypt, in the Netherlands, in Colombia, in Poland, in Italy, in Canada, in the United States, etc.

The difference between the 1930s and 2023: in 2023 we know what happened in the 1930s-1940s (the Holocaust) and should know and do better.

1st Snow

We are getting the First Snow of the Season right now.

It should not be allowed to snow again until December 25th and then not again after that.

45 Days To Go

45 days until Wreaths Across America

On December 16, 2023 Wreaths Across America honors Veterans and Military Spouses at 3,400 Cemeteries across all 50 US States, DC, 5 US Territories and at the 26 American Battlefield Monument Cemeteries around the World with 2 Million wreaths.

https://www.wreathsacrossamerica.org/

Dragging Deplaning

From the BBC:

“Air Canada accused of forcing man with cerebral palsy to drag himself off plane”

(Photo of Rodney Hodgins in Las Vegas)

Canadian officials have launched a probe after a man in a wheelchair said he was forced to drag himself out of an Air Canada plane because he was not offered assistance. Rodney and Deanna Hodgins, a Canadian couple, said the incident happened on a flight from Vancouver to Las Vegas in August. Ms Hodgins has accused the airline of failing her husband "in every sense". The BBC has reached out to Air Canada for comment.

Ms Hodgins detailed the incident in an interview with the BBC. She said her husband, who has spastic cerebral palsy and who uses a motorised wheelchair, was not offered any help by Air Canada crew to get off the plane. Usually, airlines provide an aisle chair to help passengers with limited mobility exit the plane safely, after all the other passengers have left. But Ms Hodgins said that no such assistance was offered, and that a crew member had told the couple that Mr Hodgins needed to get to the front of the plane by himself. "They made it very clear that they wanted us to get off the plane because they had to turn it around," Ms Hodgins said. "We thought it was a joke at first, but after we were flabbergasted," she said. She said that eight cleaning crew members, two flight attendants, and the captain and co-captain watched as she tried to help her husband exit the plane. "I was so mad at watching him fight to drag his uncooperative body so slowly and painfully," she said, adding that he suffered muscle spasms as he tried to make his way toward the cockpit.

"It took us struggling, in front of a dozen people, as some looked away and others looked on with shame, to get him off that plane," Ms Hodgins said. She added that her husband suffered for days from pain while they were in Las Vegas. The couple had travelled there to celebrate their first wedding anniversary. The incident has been covered widely in Canadian media, and Ms Hodgins said the airline has since apologised to the couple. "An apology is great and we do appreciate that," she said, but added that "Rodney really wants change, so it's not over for him, and it's certainly not over for us." "We just want to make sure that this really never happens again."

In a statement to the CBC, Air Canada said it uses a third-party wheelchair assistance specialist in Las Vegas. "Following our investigation into how this serious service lapse occurred, we will be evaluating other Mobility Assistance service partners in Las Vegas," the airline said. The Canadian Transportation Agency confirmed to the BBC that it is investigating the incident. It added that airlines are required to assist passengers with limited mobility, including when they are boarding or getting off an aircraft. Ms Hodgins said her husband's rights "were trampled on" in the aftermath of the incident. "Rodney is the most beautiful human on the planet, and did not deserve this at all." But she added she was grateful for the outpouring of support from fellow Canadians since their story became public.

Accessibility advocates have long called for better rules to ease travel for people who require wheelchairs or other assistance, including allowing them to sit on their own chair during the flight. Others have called out airlines for taking poor care of their wheelchairs, with some being damaged during travel.

According to data by the US Department of Transportation, airlines mishandled 871 wheelchairs and scooters, amounting to 1.6 for every 100, in the month of January, which is the most recent month data is available.

^ These kinds of horrible incidents are sadly becoming the norm for the Disabled  - because the Airlines and the Airports don’t seem to care about the Disabled.

I have travelled Domestically and Internationally with someone who used a wheelchair and while we were lucky to not have to have them crawl on the floor to deplane we have had lots of issues and long waits. ^

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-67279813

New Ambassador

From the BBC:

“Jack Lew confirmed as new US Ambassador to Israel”

(Jack Lew held a number of senior roles in the Obama and Clinton administrations)

The US Senate has confirmed former treasury secretary Jack Lew as the new US Ambassador to Israel. President Joe Biden nominated Mr Lew, an Orthodox Jew who held top posts in prior administrations, in September. The White House urged Congress to confirm him quickly after Hamas's attack, as "high-level diplomatic representation" is "critical". The Senate voted largely on party lines, with Democrats and two Republicans backing Mr Biden's choice. Mr Lew needed a simple majority in the 100-member Senate for his appointment to be confirmed.

Who is Jack Lew? Raised in an observant Jewish family in New York, Mr Lew, 68, has maintained a low profile in Washington, D.C., despite a career that boasts several important postings. Under Presidents Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, the longtime civil servant led the Office of Management and Budget, which oversees the president's budget requests. Mr Lew later served for a year as President Obama's White House chief of staff, one of the most influential cabinet positions. A budget expert, he was then appointed as treasury secretary in 2013 and served in that post until 2017. That appointment process was memorable for the criticism of his illegible loopy signature, as it would appear on American currency if he became secretary. He quickly adopted a more traditional sign-off. Mr Lew began his career in politics in 1973. He worked for eight years as the primary domestic adviser to House Speaker Tip O'Neill, an iconic and powerful Democrat.

Lew's view of Israel and Palestinians Mr Lew has previously spoken in support of a two-state solution. He openly criticised Israel and its conservative prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, while working under President Obama. He also defended the US's 2016 decision not to veto the UN Security Council condemnation of Israeli settlements on occupied land. During his recent nomination hearing, however, Lew said he has "worried deeply about the survival of the State of Israel" throughout his life. Growing up, he said, his family believed deeply in the creation and defence of a Jewish homeland. That background and Hamas's attack informed Mr Lew's view of the post's important responsibility, he said. "At this moment, there is no greater mission than to be asked to strengthen the ties between the United States and the State of Israel and to work toward peace in a region that has known so much war and destruction," he said in his opening statement to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

Mr Lew said that as ambassador he would work "to end the horrific attacks by Hamas" and make sure Israel has all "it needs to defend itself". He said he would strive to help American captives return home. He also said he would do everything in his power to stop the conflict from expanding, aid innocent Palestinians trapped in Gaza, and stymie the influence of Iran, which he called "a threat to regional stability and to Israel's existence".

The hearing and Republican opposition Senate Democrats had stressed their desire to get Mr Lew into the ambassador's post, which was vacated in July, as quickly as possible. Republicans, however, expressed reservations and in some cases hostility to the appointment. Mr Lew sparred with Republicans during his hearing over his work on the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, commonly known as the Iran Nuclear Deal. The agreement, which included the UK, the US and several European countries, limited Tehran's nuclear programme. In return, Western countries and the UN agreed to eventually lift sanctions and unfreeze Iranian funds. Jim Risch, the top Republican on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said he had "reservations" over Mr Lew because of his involvement in the deal as President Obama's Treasury Secretary: "Holding hands with Iran under the table doesn't work for me." Republicans have long opposed the Iran Nuclear Deal, arguing it did not do enough to ensure Tehran would not develop a nuclear weapon and gave the government too much financial support. Donald Trump famously pulled the US out the agreement early in his administration. Other Senate Republicans claimed the deal had allowed Iran to fund groups like Hamas. A few also suggested Mr Lew had misled Congress when testifying about the agreement as secretary. Mr Lew disputed the claims, arguing that all Iran gained was access to "their money that we had frozen". Iran agreed to the terms but was unhappy with the outcome, he said.

^ It’s important for the United States to have an Ambassador in every Country we have an Embassy in. It is even more important now for the US and for Israel to have a US Ambassador at the US Embassy in Jerusalem. The US is working with Israel to punish Hamas for their Terrorist Attack that killed American Citizens and where American Hostages were taken. ^

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-67211739

Equal Restrictions

From Reuters:

“Switzerland lifts extra restrictions against gay men giving blood”

(Nurse Agnes Besancon check on Gabriel Delabays during a blood donation on the first day gay men in the country could give blood after Switzerland lifted long-standing restrictions, at the transfusion center CRS in Epalinges near Lausanne, Switzerland, November 1, 2023.)

Gabriel Delabays sat calmly, his feet elevated on a reclining chair, as a nurse drew blood from his left arm at a Swiss transfusion centre on Wednesday, the first day gay men in the country could give blood without extra restrictions. Switzerland amended blood donation criteria for men who have sexual relations with other men, making ineligibility criteria the same for homosexuals and heterosexuals. "I'm moved that we made it, especially after such a long battle," said Delabays, a member of the communal council in the Lausanne suburb of Ecublens who represents the Swiss Liberal Free Democratic Party (FDP). "In some ways, I think this is a small page in a history book that says: On Nov. 1, 2023, Switzerland allowed homosexuals to donate their blood more easily."

Under Switzerland's new regulations, a four-month waiting period applies to all people after their last sexual encounter with a new partner - heterosexual or homosexual - or a 12-month waiting period if sexual contacts have taken place with more than two partners within the last four months. Until 2017, gay men were systematically barred from giving blood in Switzerland, a policy dating to the start of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s. Since then, men sexually active with other men were allowed to donate blood only if 12 months had passed since their last homosexual encounter. "The main feeling we have is 'finally'. Finally we can take part in society in this way," said Gaé Colussi, regional officer for the French-speaking part of Switzerland at Pink Cross, which represents the interests of gay and bisexual men across the country.

Some other European countries, including Spain and Italy, have no restrictions preventing men who have sexual relations with men from giving blood. France removed additional restrictions on gay blood donors last year. Swiss Transfusion SRC, which secures the Switzerland's blood supply, submitted a request to medical authorities to revise the criteria based on a risk assessment of sexual behaviours, the epidemiological situation in Switzerland and data from countries that have already lifted restrictions. SwissMedic, the authority that licences and monitors therapeutic products, agreed to the changes. "The new ineligibility criteria define even more precisely that it is indeed risky behaviour, and not a given sexual orientation, that underpins ineligibility," SwissMedic said in a statement. "This is something we support." Donor Delabays pledged he would become a regular at the transfusion centre. "It's a really small gesture that can save someone," he said.

^ Giving Blood should have the same requirements whether you are Gay or Straight everywhere in the world. ^

https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/switzerland-lifts-extra-restrictions-against-gay-men-giving-blood-2023-11-01/

Commandos In Israel

From Yahoo/NYT:

“American Commandos Are in Israel Helping to Locate Hostages, Pentagon Says”

(A demonstration outside the United Nations last week symbolizing the kidnapped hostages in Israel.)

American commandos on the ground in Israel are helping locate the more than 200 hostages seized during Hamas’ surprise cross-border attacks on Oct. 7, the Pentagon’s top special operations policy official said Tuesday. “We’re actively helping the Israelis to do a number of things,” Christopher Maier, an assistant secretary of defense, said at a special operations conference in Washington. He said a main task was to help Israel “identify hostages, including American hostages. It’s really our responsibility to do so.”

Maier declined to say how many U.S. Special Operations forces were currently in Israel. But other U.S. officials say the Defense Department has dispatched several dozen commandos in recent weeks, in addition to a small team that was in Israel on Oct. 7 conducting previously scheduled training. The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss operational matters, said the commandos would join FBI, State Department and other U.S. government hostage-recovery specialists in their discussions with Israeli counterparts.

The U.S. Special Operations forces are not assigned any combatant roles in Israel, but they are talking through with their Israeli counterparts “what is going to be a very complex fight going forward” in the Gaza Strip, Maier said. In his discussions with his Israeli counterpart, Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin has stressed the need for careful consideration of how Israeli forces conduct a ground invasion of Gaza, where Hamas maintains an intricate network of tunnels under densely populated areas. “We will work with them as much as possible to help advise them on those types of activities,” Maier said.

Several Western countries have secretly moved small teams of their own special forces closer to Israel to help with any potential rescue operation and to be nearby to assist in any large-scale evacuations of their citizens from Israel or Lebanon.

Maier said U.S. Special Operations forces in the region are also poised “to help our own citizens get out of places and to help our embassies be secure.” US officials are intently focused on trying to secure the release of hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza – among them American citizens – a task that sources said is now further complicated by Israel’s expansion of its ground operations into Gaza. The US remains a part of the ongoing talks that include Israel, Qatar, Egypt and Hamas to get a large group of hostages out of Gaza, and officials are now contending with Israel pressing forward with ground operations into the strip. Biden administration officials have been calling on Israel to consider so-called humanitarian pauses that can allow for civilians in Gaza, including hostages, to exit, and for aid to get in. Offering a glimpse into how unpredictable and fluid the situation remains, a senior US official told CNN on Monday that they believed the prospects of getting hostages out could be described as “50/50.”

The Israeli military says that 240 people are being held hostage by Hamas. Five hostages have been released so far. Israeli soldier Ori Megidish was freed during ground operations in Gaza on 29 October. Two women, Nurit Cooper and Yocheved Lifschitz, were freed on Monday 24 October. On Friday 20 October, two US hostages - a mother and daughter - were also freed. Hamas says it has hidden the hostages in "safe places and tunnels" within Gaza. Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have previously said the hostages include 20 children and between 10 and 20 over-60s.

^ Every Country has to do whatever they can to get their Hostages back alive. ^

https://www.yahoo.com/news/american-commandos-israel-helping-locate-120149442.html

Not Yet

 

All Saints' Day

 

Holidays

2023 November Holidays - Daily Calendar National, World Days

November Holidays - Monthly Celebrations

Aviation History Month

Child Safety Protection Month

International Drum Month

National Adoption Awareness Month

National Caregivers Appreciation Month

National Diabetes Awareness Month

National Epilepsy Month

National Model Railroad Month

National Novel Writing Month

Native American Heritage Month

Peanut Butter Lovers Month

Real Jewelry Month

National Sleep Comfort Month

World Vegan Month

 

November Holidays - Weekly Events

Week 1 Chemistry Week

Week 3 Game and Puzzle Week

 

November 2023 Daily Holidays, Special and Wacky Days:

November 1

 All Saint’s Day

  Dios Los Muertos

National Author’s Day

World Vegan Day

November 2

All Soul’s Day

Deviled Egg Day

Look for Circles Day

Men Make Dinner Day

Plan Your Epitaph Day

November 3

Cliché Day

Housewife’s Day

Sandwich Day

November 4

Book Lovers Day

King Tut Day

Check Your Blood Pressure Day

National Bison Day

Pumpkin Destruction Day

Use Your Common Sense Day

November 5

Daylight Savings Time ends at 2:00 a.m.

Gunpowder Day

Guy Fawkes Day

November 6

Marooned without a Compass Day

National Nacho Day

Saxophone Day

November 7

Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day

International Merlot Day

U.S. General Election Day

 November 8

Cook Something Bold Day

Dunce Day

November 9

Chaos Never Dies Day

World Freedom Day

November 10

Forget-Me-Not Day

USMC Day

November 11

Veteran’s Day

World Origami Day

November 12

Chicken Soup for the Soul Day 

Hindu Diwali Day

National French Dip Day

World Pneumonia Day

November 13

Caregiver Appreciation Day

National Indian Pudding Day

Sadie Hawkins Day

World Kindness Day

November 14

National Pickle Day

Operating Room Nurse Day

World Diabetes Day

Young Readers Day

November 15

America Recycles Day

Clean Your Refrigerator Day

National Philanthropy Day

November 16

Button Day

Great American Smokeout 

Have a Party With Your Bear Day

International Tolerance Day

National Fast Food Day

November 17

Electronic Greeting Card Day

Homemade Bread Day

Take A Hike Day

World Peace Day

November 18

National Adoption Day

Occult Day

November 19

Have a Bad Day Day

Play Monopoly Day

November 20

Absurdity Day

Beautiful Day

Universal Children’s Day

November 22

Go For a Ride Day

Love Your Freckles Day

National Jukebox Day

National Tie One On Day

November 23

Eat a Cranberry Day 

National Cashew Day

National Espresso Day

Thanksgiving

November 24

All Our Uncles are Monkeys Day

Black Friday

Buy Nothing Day

Evolution Day

You’re Welcome Day

November 25

National Parfait Day

Small Business Saturday

November 26  Shopping Reminder Day 

November 27

Cyber Monday

Pins and Needles Day

November 28

French Toast Day

Make Your Own Head Day

Red Planet Day

 November 29

Chia Pet Day

Square Dance Day

November 30

National Mason Jar Day

Stay At Home Because You Are Well Day

http://www.holidayinsights.com/moreholidays/november.htm

November