Our own Snoopy the Goon hosts this week’s Haveil Havalim. Go and read, I suspect more than one post will be about Tisha b’Av, one of the most mournful days in Jewish history.

For the uninitiated, among many other things, both Temples were destroyed on the ninth of Av.

Between doing new home-related things and heading to NorVA for my weekly trip to the home office, I find myself more busy than usual lately.

You may have to talk among yourselves while I’m gone.

Coming down the tubes: A takedown of the various anti-Semitic trolls and creepazoids I’ve had lately (it’s really time to hit the small-brained crowd again, since they keep on thinking they can handle words of three syllables), more cat pictures and, of course, news about Jews.

While I’m gone, there’s always Haveil Havalim. And I’m behind in reminding you to check out Shire Network News podcasts. Okay, I haven’t had time to do that lately, either, but you should be listening every week, because we rock, with or without me.

Boker Tov Boulder lists a number of prisoner releases and some of the crimes committed by the released terrorists.

Elder of Ziyon finds that the “moderate” country of Lebanon is celebrating the release of the murderer Kuntar.

Israel Matzav looks into the malaise Israel suffers from that led to the release.

This Ongoing War contrasts Israel’s values with that of its enemies.

Daled Amos has misgivings about Misgav.

Israelly Cool presents Trivia Time. The answer, I’m sure is someone who is usually described as pro-Western or “moderate.”

Meryl wishes Israel would lavish a generous parting gift on Samir Kuntar.

Treppenwitz weighs in with Let the enemy decide the rules:

These useful idiots pleaded for the IDF to spare the poor, hapless Lebanese who were caught between Israel’s mighty army and Hezbollah’s well entrenched forces… pointing out that the Lebanese deserved mercy because they are a modern, secular people just like us.

‘Moderate’ Lebanese blogs were linked, and the grand old days when Beirut was known as the ‘Paris of the East’ were invoked repeatedly… while doctored photos of burning Beirut neighborhoods became like fixed wallpaper behind the media’s talking heads who dutifully read Hezbollah scripts about Israeli atrocities.

Ignored was the fact that these cosmopolitan Lebanese had watched approvingly for decades as Hezbollah set up rocket batteries and supporting military infrastructure in their towns and villages. Ignored was the cover and support these poor secular Lebanese willingly provided to Hezbollah for a generation.

Ha’aretz illustrates the kidnapping. The Regev and Goldwasser families put on a brave face.

Shlomo Goldwasser, the father of Ehud Goldwasser whose body was returned to Israel Wednesday morning as part of a prisoner exchange with Hezbollah, said after seeing the his son’s coffin that he and his wife did not want to see their son’s body because they prefer to remember him as he was.

Background on the mediator.

Officially, Conrad’s mediation effort has been on behalf of the UN secretary general, because the return of Eldad Regev and Ehud Goldwasser is part of Security Council Resolution 1701, which brought an end to the Second Lebanon War.

Except that the return of Regev and Goldwasser according to 1701 was supposed to be unconditional. Not only has Hezbollah re-armed under the watchful eye of UN forces, the UN refuses even to insist that the terms of 1701 be obeyed in this case. Not to mention that the kidnapping itself and the presence of Hezbollah in southern Lebanon violate 425.

Ron ben Yishai on the speech we won’t hear from Olmert.

Therefore, even though we recently acquired credible information that Goldwasser and Regev are no longer alive, the government decided, on my recommendation, to approve the deal and ignore the warnings issued by the Mossad and Shin Bet chiefs. Had the Second Lebanon War ended in clear victory, had the Winograd Commission not criticized my conduct, and had my public and moral status not been eroded in the wake of the Talansky affair, I may have acted differently. Yet in my current status, I had no choice.

Danny Haran’s brother feels “defeated.”

Israel gets ready to pay interest on the transaction:

The feeling is shared by many in the IDF Northern Command, where senior commanders estimate that after two years of quiet, Hizbullah may use the period immediately following the swap to strike at Israel. While the possibility of another kidnapping attack against IDF soldiers is being taken into account, there is also a fear in the IDF that Hizbullah may try to infiltrate an Israeli town along the northern border.

No wonder it’s being called Hezbollah’s ultimate victory.

Crosposted on Soccer Dad.

Check out the latest Haveil Havalim #172 hosted by my old friend (appropriate since it’s the “old fogey” edition) Daled Amos. Truth is he’s doing what he does daily anyway. If there’s any blogger out there who’s promoting the rest of the J-Blogosphere on a regular basis, I haven’t seen him or her. Not only does Daled Amos regularly link to other J-bloggers, he also keeps Google Reader windows linking to Israel and Jewish related blogs. So if you want to know what Jewish bloggers are blogging about, Check out Daled Amos regularly.

I found a new blog today, the Bookworm Room. It is blogrolled. Check it out: Israel, politics, books, and dogs. I think Harrison would like this blog a lot.

Come to think of it, use the comments here to recommend blogs that I may not have read yet. Time to add some to the blogroll.

This week: The MommyBlogger edition.

Writing about an industrial zone on the border of Gaza set to open nearly ten years ago, William Orme of the New York Times reported:

Now, hailed by all sides as the first tangible achievement of the current phase of the tortuous Israeli-Palestinian negotiating process, the Gaza Industrial Estate is expected to be operating before the end of the year. It will employ up to a thousand Palestinians, and eventually more, in several small-scale manufacturing ventures.What was hailed here as a diplomatic and economic breakthrough would almost anywhere else in the world be an unexceptional, small step in industrial development.

Still, it is a measure of the Gaza Strip’s isolation and economic desperation that this tentative, modest project looms so large for Palestinian planners.

Orme, of course, notes how Israel was likely to render the success of such a project unviable.

Gaza’s exports are routinely obstructed by border closings and security checks, further skewing a chronic trade imbalance. For every five trucks that arrive here from Israel, only one goes out, and it typically goes out very slowly.On a recent afternoon at the border checkpoint next to the industrial park, six Israeli customs inspectors examined a truckload of Gaza potatoes for hours, pallet by pallet, bag by bag, with hand-held metal detectors.

Unfortunately, one of the industrial zones bordering Gaza, Karni, was often the focus of terrorism.

In 2004 after Israel arrested an organizer of a terrorist attack in Ashdod where the terrorists were transported through Karni, Israel released some relevant information about the suspect:

Atallah noted that in the weeks prior to his arrest, the Hamas and Al-Aqsa Martyr Brigades tried to carry out another double suicide bombing into Israel, using the Karni crossing as the route for smuggling the suicide bombers. Atallah was responsible for arranging the release of the containers from the crossing; the suicide bombers were to be hidden under a double floor within a container. Atallah said that the terrorist organizations view the Karni crossing as a weak point, lacking full security checks, and providing an attractive route for smuggling terrorists into Israel. For that matter, the Hamas, assisted by Atallah, was planning to purchase trucks and establish a company for transporting containers from the Gaza Strip into Israel and use it as a guise for smuggling terrorists into Israel.

(emphasis mine)

In a 2006 briefing a UNRWA official said:

Recent incursions into the Karni industrial zone have left the infrastructure severely damaged. This usually vibrant area is now empty and quiet. Many of the companies will struggle to get started again. Some of them might not survive. Last month the offices of many Karni based Gazan companies were demolished, even the motherboards of their computers were taken away.”If violence stops there are other things to be done. This industrial zone has to be working again. Otherwise reconstruction will be unsustainable in Gaza”, Mr Grandi said.

The problem is that Karni became a focal point for attack because of its vulnerability. In fact the idea - logical on the face - that facilitating commerce and economic opportunity between the Palestinians and Israel would cement peace between them, has worked out quite the opposite so far.

I bring you this background because Tony Blair knows that he can bring peace to the Middle East by following this path right now.

Mr. Blair, a former British prime minister and now the representative of the so-called quartet of Middle East peacemakers — the United States, the United Nations, Russia and the European Union — announced plans for economic, social and security measures at a news conference. He said it would be “a mistake to think” that the political negotiations could work without changing the reality on the ground.That, he said, meant easing conditions for Palestinians in their daily lives while assuring Israelis their security.

Among the measures, which Mr. Blair said he had been discussing with Israeli defense officials, were efforts to ease the movement of Palestinian people and goods; the development of two industrial parks; approval for new building in Palestinian villages in areas under Israeli control; and the creation of a special Palestinian economic and security zone in and around Jenin, in the north, as a testing ground for the rest of the West Bank.

Will Mr. Blair’s initiatives pay off? The experience in Gaza shows that rather improving the lives of the Palestinians, the economic zones may well become targets for opportunistic terrorists. This is not to say that his effort will fail. Still past experience tells us that Mr. Blair’s good intentions notwithstanding, the implementation of his plan may well make matters worse.

Crossposted on Soccer Dad.

Our esteemed, lovely and talented co-blogger Simply Jews hosts this week’s tremendous Haveil Havalim #164 (the no-name edition) with a special emphasis on Yom Hashoa.

I’ve been remiss these past couple of weeks keeping up with my regular carnivals.Last week’s Haveil Havalim #163 was up at Tzipiyah.

And over Pesach Jack had a non-Haveil Havalim roundup a testament (as if any were needed) of his commitment to the J-blogoshphere.

Haveil Havalim #160 is up at Life In Israel with an excellent sampling of the best of the Jewish/Israel blogosphere of the past week. Of note are posts about the “burqa babes,” the seven samurai and how Judaism is like the movies. I have a hard time seeing how “The Matrix” has anything to do with Judaism.

My Shrapnel hosted an excellent Haveil Havalim #157 (The Jewish and Israel related blogging carnvial) covering topics such as Sderot, the massacre at Merkaz Harav and culture, with all the attitude you’ve come to expect from Gila.

Esser Agaroth puts a lot more than 2 cents worth of effort into this week’s Haveil Havalim #154, the Jewish/Israel blogging carnival. Check it out! (I was surprised to learn that Esser Agaroth is a waffler!)

Jack continues to make his mark on Haveil Havalim as he has recruited a new hostess I’ll Call Baila who hosts Haveil Havalim #153. If you’re interested in Jewish blogging, check it out! To submit for the next edition click here.

Jack’s Shack continues his stewardship of Haveil Havalim - The Jewish and Israel related blogging carnival - with the prophetic Haveil Havalim #152 - Patriotos must lose edition.

It’s odd writing this when I had nothing to do with it. Haveil Havalim #151 is UP at Jack’s Shack. He’s got a great array of posts on topics ranging from personal reminisces to Israel to the presidential campaign to Anthrax (the rock group, that is.) Check it out!To submit a post about Judaism or Israel for the next edition click here. If you’re a blogger and wish to host let Jack know here. And please, especially if you have a post featured in the current edition, PUBLICIZE IT!

Listed at the Truth Laid Bear Ubercarnival.

Technorati Tags: Blog carnivals, haveil havalim, Israel, Judaism.

Haveil Havalim #150 is UP!

Here are this week’s topics.

Post of the Week
Israel
Judaism
Politics
Abuse of Power
History
Antisemitism
Personal
Torah
Phoning it in
Humor

And I forgot to post last week that Haveil Havalim #149 is UP too!

Well Haveil Havalim #145 is UP!

Given that it’s the 3rd anniversary edition you might be interested in some past milestones.

Here’s what the 1st edition looked like.
Here’s the 1st anniversary edition.
Here’s the second anniversary edition

The categories this time include

Channukah
Politics
Israel
Judaism
History
Torah
Humor
Misc
Media

And it features posts on:

The inquisition in the new world

Reporting from enemy territory

Returning to Shechem

Perspectives on Channukah

Criticizing Tutu

Another work accident

and much, much more.

I was traveling yesterday so I forgot to post that Haveil Havalim #144 (the Jewish/Israel blogging carnival) is UP at Jack’s Shack of Pancakes Latkes.

If you have a post that is about Judaism or Israel feel free to submit it for consideration in this week’s upcoming edition.

Haveil Havalim #143 is UP!

Haveil Havalim is the Israel/Jewish blogging carnival.

Among the great posts:
The history of the UNRWA
Asser Levy
When Hebron is as distant as Lebanon
How should you light?

The categories are:

Annapolis
History
Israel
Politics
Humor
Judaism
Torah
Culture
Antisemitism

And that first one is rather large.

Please check it out and enjoy.

Haveil Havalim #142 is UP!

Remembering a friend who died too soon.

The latest in Israeli medical breakthroughs.

The rain in Spain Israel.

An Al Dura roundup.

An Annapolis roundup.

And much, much, more…

Personal
Israel
Humor
Al Dura
Annapolis
Politics
Judaism
Culture
Torah
History
Carnival

Haveil Havalim #141 is up at Yid With Lid. In honor (or fear) of the upcoming Annapolis conference it’s appropriately called the “Save Israel Edition.”

Haveil Havalim is the Jewish/Israel blogging carnival.

Live it up with Life in Israel who’s hosting Haveil Havalim #140!

Read about:

Kristallnacht.

Rabin and Amir.

The fair and balanced media.

A blogging (Jewish) rock star.

And a scholar reveals what Esav/Esau might have looked like!

Plus lots more.

You know, I’m not really done with recovering from the events of the past month. I didn’t really get much sleep last night. Got a long nap this afternoon, but I’m still pretty tired.

Currently reading this article about how the Saudis are behind most of the world’s terrorism. Gee. What a shock.

And this one about how Hamas is going to take over the West Bank. Lovely.

For the rest, go keep up with Omri and Soccer Dad and Elder of Zion for the latest. Or Snoopy or the myriad other members of the JBlogosphere, several of whom were in town for my bat mitzvah (Judith, Lynn, and Anne, besides Omri).

There is always Hot Air or LGF, where I get the news when I’m too tired to do it myself.

And just to update you if you haven’t read it there, there’s no way SNN is going away. We’re working out our technical difficulties, and by the time I buy a new microphone (my cheap one broke during the cleanup phase), it will be time to put out a new podcast, with the same old crew involved. We’re on hiatus for the moment, but not for long. This is where I get to say: The reports of our demise have been greatly exaggerated.

Still smiling over the events of the weekend, though. I’ll be carrying with me forever the memory of ending Shabbat services utterly surrounded by the children and young people of my congregation, leading the congregation in Adon Olam. It was a great service, and Friday’s, too. I told the kids we were going to have a “regular, old-fashioned Rabbi Shapiro service.” That we did.

Esser Agaroth has posted a very fine Haveil Havlaim #137!

It’s about Israel, slices of life, media bias and Ann Coulter (again).

Haveil Havalim #136 is UP!

It’s about a

NEW grandson

NEW blogger

NEW season

NEW word

NEW job

And much more

and more Ann Coulter than you can shake a stick at.

Sarah is teaching her children to be warmongers and monsters. I think there’s a little sexism thrown in, too, as it’s obvious she could have talked her daughter into a soldier costume as well. Ask any RadFem. No, wait, they’d be horrified at the militarization of our American youth, and go into a long, windy lecture on the anti-animal rights attitude reflected by Rebecca’s choice of a [mythical] animal for Halloween.

This is a new kid on the block. I haven’t read more than a couple of posts, but hey, this blogosphere is big enough for all sixty gazillion of us regardless of whether or not someone writes things I agree with. Okay. He’s out sick today. Scroll down and see if you like the content.

This is the guy who shared the BBC World Have Your Say program with me. He has a website, and ohmigod, is it really orange? Dude! Black type on white background is there for a reason. OUR EYESIGHT. My eyes! My eyes! I think I’m blind! (I’m going to email him a link to my rant about reverse type on the web.)

This post is a freebie, folks. Plug your own blog in the comments and tell people what you’ve been writing about.

This week’s Shire Network News, featuring Reut Cohen talking about the anti-Semites at UC Irvine (and they are the top of the bottom of the barrel there, if you get my drift). My contribution: In which I read a letter from Iseema bin Laden, explaining why there’s a freeze-frame on the latest Osama bin Laden tape.

Haveil Havalim went up Sunday night, but I forgot to link it until now. Sorry, Gail.

Last, but not least, a fellow Richmonder took one for the team and sat through 90 minutes of Ward Churchill at VCU.

Really. Debunken gets the Patience Of The Year Award for only being caught rolling his eyes.

It’s over at Life in Israel. Go look.

Our weekly Carnival of the Jews is up, over at Soccer Dad’s.

The latest edition of Haveil Havalim is up.

Say, that sounds like something I just wrote. Like, in the title to this post.

Well, it’s at Soccer Dad’s, who could also be known as Carnival Dad.

A Rahel fundraiser: You folks helped me out big-time last year when Gracie was sick, and now we need to help Rahel. The vet bills were high, but Lady has recovered from her diabetes and is happy and healthy and no longer a stray. Paypal won’t send money to Israel (I don’t know why; I’m working on that). So I think we’re going to have to send checks. Or international money orders.

Them’s fighting words: I want this t-shirt. I REALLY want this t-shirt.

Can’t drive in Saudi Arabia, but she can drive in Israel (that racist, apartheid state): A Muslim woman taxi driver in Jerusalem, and the BBC notices. (And they don’t seem to be able to hit Israel with anything for it, either.) Seriously? There’s only one woman cab driver in Jerusalem? You know, come to think of it, I never had a woman cab driver in NYC. Not once.

Sending your children off to war: The left can pretend that the world is really a peaceful place, but it isn’t. Lady-Light writes about her daughter’s choice of unit for her IDF service.

Haveil Havalim: I forgot last week’s, which was at Reb Chaim HaQoton’s. Complete with commentary. Well, what’d you expect, with a name like Reb Chaim? (Oh, so that’s where Sabba Hillel got the post about the cost of building the First Temple. Billions and billions, folks.)

Never too late for Tisha b’Av: Judith Weiss’ annual Tisha b’Av post. Read it, and weep. Really.