A college friend forwarded me this post on LinkedIn by a friend of hers from childhood. In her own words, “I grew up w Joel. He is the best in his profession. He composes music for ads & commercials. He wrote the music for 7 commercials that ran during this years Super Bowl. He is a giant in the industry.” When I read his post I was horrified and inspired. I was angry and I was proud. I could relate. It’s personal. For all of us.
Last year, I was honored to be named Jury President for Music & Sound Craft at the 2025 The One Club for Creativity. I’ve supported The One Club for decades as a sponsor, advocate, judge, and multi-award winner. JSM has earned dozens of One Show Pencils and topped the One Show Global Creative Rankings both globally and domestically.
Shortly after accepting, I received an email from the CEO and Board stating that my personal social media posts unapologetically condemning antisemitism and supporting the Jewish people were “too much” and “triggering” to some at the Club. They said such posts would not be “tolerated.” They objected specifically to my use of the word eradicate when describing what I hoped would happen to the terrorists of October 7. They didn’t like my post celebrating the IDF’s elimination of Sinwar, the architect of 10/7, who raped, mutilated, burned babies, and held hostages. My expression of joy in his demise, they said, was also “too much.”
I refused to accommodate and resigned.
They knew my nephew serves in the IDF. This isn’t theoretical. It’s personal. My values, my family, my identity, my people were under attack. Again.
In a follow-up call, TOCC leadership asked what they could do to keep me. I requested one simple thing: a specific, standalone statement condemning antisemitism—like they’ve done for BLM, LGBTQ+, AAPI, Ukraine, and others. Instead, they sent a vague, diluted message grouping antisemitism with racism, xenophobia, homophobia, Islamophobia, etc., scheduled to run on Holocaust Remembrance Day.
I told them how tone-deaf and offensive that was. They refused to revise it. And then… said nothing. Complete silence. No statement at all. No support for Jewish creatives in our industry. No condemnation of antisemitism.
I also pointed out that only 1 of 42 board members is Jewish, despite generations of Jewish creatives who helped shape this industry. I can name at least 100 deserving Jewish creative leaders off the top of my head. That silence and lack of representation speaks volumes.
I formally cut all ties. I won’t support any organization, especially in my industry, that refuses to condemn antisemitism. This was a choice. And a refusal.
Many urged me to stay quiet. That going public might hurt the business I’ve built over 35 years.
I can’t.
I will not be silenced. Not now. Not ever. And certainly not by an ad awards show that acts as moral authority on every issue and condemns all forms of hate, except Jewish hate by consciously and purposely remaining silent while Jews are hunted, threatened, and murdered. Again.
I was a Jew before JSM. I’ll be a Jew after JSM.
Am Yisrael Chai.
Joel isn’t the only one who faces this type of Jew hatred, discrimination, and expectation to just accept it. It happens to most of us every day and we don’t even see it or realize it. Some of us even think it’s acceptable because we have ‘privilege’. We cannot stay quiet in the face of this hatred. We cannot stick our heads in the sand and hope that it will just go away or leave us alone. History has shown us that it never does. It comes for us all in the end. We must fight back. We must stand up and speak out. Staying quiet isn’t an option. Joel isn’t. Neither should any of us.
Britain suspended free trade talks with Israel and the EU said it will review whether Israel is violating the human rights clause of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. France, the U.K. and Canada threatened sanctions against Israel. All because Israel refuses to let Hamas, a terrorist organization still holding Israeli hostages, stay in power to murder, rape, and kidnap more Israelis. They think we are the same Jews of the past who meekly hid and accepted our fate. They are 100% wrong. Prime Minister Netanyahu spoke up powerfully about this today.
“The world is telling us to end the war,” Netanyahu said, in the first press conference he has held in Israel since December. “I am prepared to end the war according to clear conditions: Hamas lays down its weapons, steps down from power, returns all the hostages, Gaza is demilitarized and we implement the Trump plan” to relocate residents of Gaza. Whoever is calling for us to end the war is calling for Hamas to stay in power,”
Love him or hate him, Bibi won’t just accept our fate as Jews to be that of victims. Neither should we. Joel showed us how to stand up and speak out. Bibi showed us how to do it. The question is, what will you do? Will you be like Joel and stand up and speak out despite the personal risk? Will you stand up to Jew hatred in the face of your ‘friends’ like Bibi is doing to the UK, France, Canada, and the EU or will you fold because they are your ‘friends’?
The choice is yours. Take the risk now or wait for the inevitable that has happened over and over again for thousands of years? I know what I am doing. I’m going to stand up and speak out. I’m going to fight Jew hatred publicly, no matter the personal cost.
The world seems to get crazier and crazier. The stock market plummets and then returns. Tariffs are high and then are gone, delayed, or small. The only constant seems to be Jew hatred, lies, and the hostages being ignored by the UN, Red Cross, and the world.
May 15th is the day of Israel Independence on the secular calendar. 77 years ago, David Ben Gurion stood in Tel Aviv, in what is now Independence Hall, and declared Israel to be a State. Every time I stand in Independence Hall, look at the seats set up as they were that day, and listen to Ben Gurion’s voice declaring the State, I get chills.
That declaration by Ben Gurion was a statement about the Jewish love of life. Of how we never forget. Of how we place life ahead of everything. This week, there were two examples of this. It was recently announced that Israel had recovered a number of documents and items from Syria that belonged to Eli Cohen. Captured as a spy by Syria and hung as punishment, Cohen is one of the great stories of Israel. I knew about what he did long before I knew his story. The actor Sasha Baron-Cohen played him brillantly in the Netflix mini-series, The Spy.
Top row, center: Cohen’s final will, handwritten in Arabic just hours before his death on May 18, 1965. Addressed to his wife Nadia and children, the letter is a heartfelt farewell filled with guidance, dignity, and emotional clarity.
Top row, right: A forged Argentine passport issued under the alias Kamel Amin Thaabet, the identity Cohen used to infiltrate the highest levels of the Syrian regime.
Middle row, right: The official death sentence, signed by Syrian military judges, condemning Cohen for espionage.
Bottom row, center: Scotch-brand audio tapes, used by Syrian intelligence to record Cohen’s interrogations and radio transmissions
While we have now retrieved more than 2,500 documents and artifacts related to Eli Cohen, we still don’t have his body back. Executed in 1965, 60 years ago, we have never forgotten him or the desire to get his body back.
This past week, the IDF and Mossad were able to recover and return the body of Sergeant First Class Tzvika Feldman. 43 years after he was killed in the Battle of Sultan Yacoub during the First Lebanon War. Syrian soldiers transferring his body to Syria until this past week when his body was returned to Israel. We love and treasure life. We don’t ever forget.
This week, Tzeela Gez and her husband Hananel, left their home in the northern West Bank community of Bruchin to head to the hospital so she could give birth to their fourth (4th) child. A terrorist shot at their car, wounding them both. A few hours later, after an emergency C-section to deliver their newborn son, Tzeela died.
The media barely covered this brutal attack. They don’t cover the violence against Israelis in the West Bank. They don’t cover the rockets that are launched at the citizens of Israel. They don’t address or condemn the ballistic missiles fired by the Houthis from Yemen targeting civilians. It is up to us to remember, to never forget. It is up to us to ensure that the souls of Eli Cohen, Tzvika Feldman, and Tzeela Gez are never forgotten. It is up to us to ensure that future Hersh, Carmel, Alex, Eden, Or, and Almog’s know who they are named for and what their obligation is to honor those they are named for.
The message below from Tzeel’s husband Hananel is the essence of Judaism. We have never and will never let them break us. We will fight for our people no matter how sad or downhearted we are. We will survive, succeed, and thrive under any and all circumstances.
Our effort to survive, succeed, and thrive means that we fight for truth. Even when it is inconvenient. Even when it is difficult. Even when the world doesn’t want to see, hear, or recognize it when it’s right in front of their face.
A friend of mine shared this piece about the history of the term Nakba that was written by Adam Louis Klein. It is a fascinating history that shows the power of the media and of repeating a lie long enough and loud enough that people think it is the truth
The term Nakba, now central to Palestinian national memory, was coined by Constantin Zureiq, a Christian Arab nationalist and key figure in shaping modern Arab nationalist ideology. As detailed in a recent article in Fathom Journal by David Szeftel, Zureiq was part of an intellectual movement in the 1930s and 40s that openly admired fascist and even Nazi models of anti-Western power, seeing them as templates for Arab revival.
When he introduced Nakba in his 1948 book Ma’na al-Nakba (The Meaning of the Disaster), it did not refer to Palestinian suffering or displacement. It referred to the Arab League’s failure to destroy the newly declared State of Israel and the humiliation of Arab armies. It was a political lament over defeat, not a humanitarian reflection on refugees.
Only later was it linked to the “right of return” for Palestinian refugees, a policy heavily promoted by the Arab League and eventually formalized through the United Nations. But this “right of return” wasn’t about refugee welfare—it became a political tool designed to prevent Israel from continuing to exist as a Jewish state by flooding it demographically.
This strategy also led to the unprecedented perpetuation of refugee status across multiple generations (see Einat Wilf’s work on this). Unlike any other refugee situation in history, Palestinians were deliberately kept in a state of statelessness by Arab regimes, denied full citizenship rights even in places like Egypt and Jordan, which directly controlled Gaza and the West Bank after 1948. In effect, the Arab League actively denied Palestinians the right to rebuild their lives in order to weaponize their suffering and make Israel appear impermanent and illegitimate.
Over time, the meaning of the Nakba shifted. It became less about the Arab world’s military failure and more about constructing a permanent Palestinian grievance narrative. The historical record was rewritten to erase the Arab invasion and rejection of the UN’s two-state partition plan, portraying the events of 1948 instead as unprovoked Israeli aggression. This narrative also conveniently erased Jordan’s displacement of Jewish communities from the West Bank, the appropriation of their land and property, and suppressed the mass dispossession of Jewish communities across Iran and Arab countries after 1948.
Eventually, the displacement of Palestinians was rebranded as a case of “ethnic cleansing” and “settler colonialism,” rather than what it historically was: the tragic outcome of a war of independence triggered by the Arab world’s invasion of the newly declared Jewish state—though it’s important to acknowledge that some forced expulsions of Palestinians did occur amidst that war.
In short, Nakba has evolved from a term describing the Arab world’s military failure to a political myth that erases historical complexity in favor of a one-sided narrative of perpetual grievance.”
I’ve been the Aida ‘refugee camp’ in Bethlehem. It is a city. They live in apartments, not tents. They have schools and community centers. Their schools and community centers teach them hate. In 2019, I met with and talked to the head of their community center. He bragged about the suicide bomber that he helped raise and create. Openly. Publicly. The world loves their Jew hatred and they will continue to use whatever and whoever they can in their effort to eliminate us. From the Assyrians to the Babylonians to the Persian to the Greeks to the Romans to the Byzantine empire to the Spanish Inquisition to the pogroms in Russia to the Nazis in the 1930s and 40s, to today, whatever it takes to attack us is free reign.
The difference is that today we fight back. Today we don’t cower in fear. We don’t allow others to determine our fate. The world can hate us and we will still fight. The world can lie about us and we will still fight. Survival isn’t an option and we won’t allow survival to be under the control of anybody else. Today we have the IDF. Today we have Israel. Today we won’t stay silent and we will fight back.
My youngest son graduated college on Friday. It was a momentous occasion in his life and in ours. My mom came in to celebrate and attend the graduation. I treasure these moments more and more as time goes on. We sat in the auditorium, watching where he was sitting (he helped us find him, texting us his location and turning around to us and waving), and waited for him to have his name announced and walk across the stage. As a parent, it was an incredible moment for many reasons.
My mom and Matthew at graduation – I treasure these moments more and more.
I noticed a few things surrounding his graduation that got me thinking. They may seem totally unrelated, but for me, they all tie together.
On the drive to campus for graduation, I noticed a few things. First, how many people drove as if they were the only car on the road. Turning right from the left turn lane. Going straight and trying to outrace cars from the left turn lane. Where was the common courtesy? Where was basic rule following? I laughed as one car that did this ended up far behind me – they almost caused an accident to end up behind the car they had to cut off.
The second thing was that when I tried to be kind, to let cars in ahead of me, how they wouldn’t accept the kindness. They wouldn’t go in front of me. It got me thinking, “When did kindness become so rare that people don’t recognize it?”
At the graduation, it was the same conflict. They asked not to scream and yell when your loved one’s name was announced as it meant the next name couldn’t be heard. Yet people screamed, drowning out the name of the next person graduating. Rudeness and lack of caring was all over the place. As I went to video my son about to walk across the stage, the people in front of me had to stand up, blocking my view. No awareness of people around them. I stood up, moved slightly, and was able to video and watch him walk. Had they done that a minute later, I would have missed it.
Yet the number of people willing to take pictures of my family when asked, the number of families who I took pictures of when asked was remarkable. The wishes of congratulations to strangers because they were celebrating the graduation of a loved one was remarkable.
What a dichotomy. It got me thinking that perhaps America isn’t really as lost as it appears. Perhaps there is hope. Perhaps we can regain our country from the extremes and return to a world of kindness, caring for others, and awareness of the world around us. Perhaps we don’t have to live in a world where it is ‘my way or the highway’ on every single issue.
I do know one thing for sure. It starts with each of us. We may not be able to change the entire country but we certainly can change our own behavior. We certainly can change the world of those around us. I hope we can all make a commitment to do our best to be kind. To be aware of those around us. To celebrate with those who are celebrating and to embrace joy rather than hate. It is how we will save our country and our world.
A little more than 10 years ago, I began writing about the rise in Jew hatred. It was controversial at that time to use the words Jew Hatred. I used them anyway because that’s what I was seeing. Swastikas being drawn on buildings in Seattle. This article in the Seattle Times on June 26, 2016, got pushback that it wasn’t happening and that this was all being overblown and exaggerated. We see now that unfortunately, I was right. This article, almost 9 years old today, is hard for me to re-read because of what has happened in those 9 years. Because of what was being called out then that was ignored by so many. Because of October 7, 2023 and what has happened since then. The signs have been there and far too many of our ‘leaders’ have chosen to ignore them.
Take for instance, this harrowing exchange between David Horowitz and a student at the University of California San Diego in 2010. This was FIFTEEN (15) years ago. The only difference between then and now is that Horowitz would be booed offstage now, this vile, hateful woman would be cheered, and the University would defend HER hatred instead of protecting Jewish students on campus.
The Jew hatred on campus was clear in 2010 but we ignored it
We saw things like this years ago but failed to take it seriously and failed to act. As a result, our Jewish students on campus today are faced with incredible antisemitism. I spoke with one of the leaders of Mothers Against Antisemitism from the Dallas chapter this week and the stories she shared about the University of North Texas were horrifying. Students afraid to be publicly Jewish in any way. Jewish/Israel speakers being spirited to campus at night, under the cover of darkness, to an unadvertised speech because had it been advertised, students would have been too afraid to show up. The work we have been doing has simply failed and we must admit it. We built building on campuses while the Jew haters built departments, programs, and hired Jew hating professors and administrators. We put Jewish names on libraries and centers for performing arts while the Jew haters invested in teaching that Jews are evil, are powerful and responsible for all the bad in the world, that Israel is a genocidal country that doesn’t want peace and are colonialists that want to take over the entire middle east and the world.
My friend Adam Bellos wrote a powerful piece last week. Most of you likely did not see it or read it. I encourge, no I implore you to read it. To think about what he writes. To take action to change the current reality. He writes:
This is the tragedy: we trained kids to explain checkpoints without explaining Herzl. We taught them to debate apartheid without introducing them to Ahad Ha’am, Rabbi Kook, or the Book of Joshua. We armed them with casualty charts, not courage. With U.N. resolutions, not roots. With talking points, not Torah. Hasbara failed because it tried to outsource pride. Because it assumed the average young Jew could fight for Israel while remaining estranged from Hebrew, from Zion, from the soul of their people. Because it traded the moral complexity of the conflict for the false clarity of press releases.
His summary is a beautiful and powerful statement that I believe in, have advocated for, and continue to push to create.
And so, this moment demands something entirely different: a revolution of Jewish education. A renaissance of context. A return to knowing who we are, not just what we’re defending. We don’t need more content creators to explain why Israel is right. We need Jewish children who know why they are Jewish. We don’t need another “crisis comms” playbook. We need people who speak Hebrew, dream in Zion, and learn how to walk into a room not begging for understanding but embodying truth.
We need to make sure we are providing quality and meaningful education to our children and, in all honesty, to our adults. As my friend Ari Shabbat often says, “The Torah is playbook for life”. If we don’t know this, don’t know how to use it, don’t bother every learning that it can be interesting, fun, and meaningful to learn Jewishly, how can we survive? If Israel becomes just another country rather than our spiritual homeland, Judaism will never be more than meaningless rituals that we do because our parents did them. There will be no meaning in hanging a mezuzah, putting on tefillin, or identifying as Jewish. We will merely be Jewish because we have been told we are Jewish. To me, that is unacceptable. I hope that you find it unacceptable as well.
I was deeply saddened to hear the news that Rabbi Sholom Lipskar (z’l), the longtime leader of The Shul of Bal Harbour and founder of the Aleph Institute, died this week. I had the privilege of meeting Rabbi Lipskar a number of times and the community he build at The Shul of Bal Harbour is extraordinary. I found him to be a man who didn’t accept the impossible. His vision impacted not just the South Florida Jewish community but the entire South Florida community and the world. I found him to be a kind man, always willing to listen, always seeing the good in people, and working to make the world a better place. If you want to read a little about him, you can do so here. The world is certainly a bit dimmer without him in it, however his teachings and life’s work remain to inspire us all.
At the end of the day, we are left with one simple question. What are we going to do? Are we going to be like Rabbi Lipskar (z’l)? Are we going to take action as Adam implores us? Are we going to take the time to learn what being Jewish is really about? Are we going to make the effort to be kind to others? The world we live in today is one that is short on kindness, on wisdom, on compassion, and on knowledge. Are you going to believe whatever somebody decides to tell you or are you going to actually learn something? Are you going to only listen to one narrative or are you going to engage with others and learn both with and from them?
The choice is yours. Just remember that choices have consequences. We are where we are today because of the choices we made years ago. When we look back in a decade or two, I hope that we are happy with the choices we make now and that we have the type of world so many of us desire and want to work to build.
For nearly 18 months now, I have been inspired to write on a very regular basis. My passions were inflamed. There was so much to think about, the ponder, to challenge. There was so much to be angry about, to be inspired by, and to write about.
The past two weeks have been challenging to put pen to paper. It isn’t that there aren’t crazy things going on in the world. It isn’t that my passions haven’t been inflamed. I have started writing many different pieces and left them unfinished. I think in part that it has felt like talking to a brick wall. The same issues keep happening over and over again. Railing against the same people telling the same lies. The same news agencies buying into the same lies. Politicians on both sides of the aisle continuing to push an agenda based on hatred.
Take for example Kilmar Abrego Garcia who was mistakenly deported to a notorious El Salvador prison by the US Government. Abrego Garcia, living in the United States, is a citizen of El Salvador. At the age of 16, Abrego Garcia fled El Salvador and illegally entered the United States in 2011. In October, 2019, Abrego Garcia applied for asylum and withholding of removal. His request for asylum was denied, however he was granted “withholding of removal” status, preventing deportation to El Salvador due to the likelihood that of him being harmed if he was returned to El Salvador. He was approved to be deported from the United States to any other country in the world. The court also found that he was a member of the terrorist organization MS-13. He was then released from custody, ICE did not appeal, and the Department of Homeland Security granted him a work permit. He appealed and the appeals court upheld the original findings. These are the facts. No matter how the media spins things, the facts don’t change.
So let’s start with the truth. He should not have been deported to El Salvador. The courts ruled on this. The administration was wrong to do this and should be held accountable for it. The Supreme Court recently ruled that they must facilitate his return. They did not agree with the finding that they must effectuate his return. That means that should he be released by El Salvador, a sovereign nation, the administration is required to do whatever is required to return him to the United States.
Some members of the U.S. Congress are outraged that he was deported and are now going there to lobby for his release and return to the United States. Should this happen, the government could detain him immediately and legally deport him anywhere else in the world. We are spending time, money, and effort on an issue that is really all about the government not following the court’s specific ruling where they should be held accountable rather than returning him to the US so he can be deported to another country.
I find myself wondering where these elected officials that are going to visit him have been since October 7, 2023, when Americans were kidnapped by Hamas and taken hostage. None of the hostages were given any due process. None of these politicians attempted to visit the hostages. None of them advocated or pressured the Red Cross to visit these American hostages or to ensure they were getting medicine or humanity. None of them attempted to pressure the leadership of Hamas to release the hostages. They currently use the term ‘disappeared’ when green card holders are detained for a deportation hearing yet fail to acknowledge that the hostages in Gaza have truly been disappeared – so much so that Hamas isn’t even sure where they are.
Edan Alexander, now 21 years old and the sole remaining living American hostage in Gaza, has been used in a propoganda video. Hamas has lost contact with whatever faction currently has him. We know from the reports of recently released hostages that Hamas is starving and torturing the hostages. Unlike Abrego Garcia, who we know where he is and people have seen him in the past week, we don’t know where Edan is. We don’t know his condition. At this point, we don’t know if he is even still alive today. Yet there is no outrage. There are no demands to the Hamas leaders who lived in luxury in Qatar without being held accountable until November, 2024, are now living in luxury in Turkey, a US ally and member of NATO. Without consequence. Without demands.
American-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander
The difference between Abrego Garcia and Edan Alexander? One is a Jew. Citizenship doesn’t matter. Legal status doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is that one is a Jew and one isn’t. I’m tired of having to write this and point it out, time after time after time. Too many of our leaders fail to do their duty to protect American citizens who are Jewish.
In Pennsylvania, the Governor’s mansion was lit on fire by a domestic terrorist because Governor Josh Shapiro is Jewish. While the Governor and his family slept after holding a Passover Seder, their home, the people of Pennsylvania’s home, was lit on fire in an attempt to murder them. There was minimal outrage and it quickly fell off the radar. An actual attempt on the life of the sitting Governor of Pennsylvania was minimized. Social justice warriors like Bernie Sanders, AOC, and the rest stayed silent.
My childhood friend, Rabbi Neil Zuckerman of Park Avenue Synagogue wrote a powerful piece about this. Neil and I went to Hebrew School together and hung out at the JCC. We went to different schools – his school was where the children of Governor Richard (Dick) Thornburgh attended so he spent time at the mansion playing with those friends. How far have we fallen as a society when more than 4 years later we remain fixated on the events of January 6th and yet the burning of the Governor of Pennsylvania’s house isn’t an issue a week after it happens. Once again, the difference is that one instance involved a Jew so it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t count.
The Pennsylvania Governor’s mansion after being lit on fire
We have lost the ability to talk with each other. To treat people as human beings even if they have different opinions or beliefs from our own. The nastiness that exists not just in politics but between individuals is horrifying. Families divided. Friendships ended. There is an old saying that “I would rather be happy than right. In today’s world that is no longer true. Too many people would rather be right than happy.
Almost every Friday, I join a group of 80+ year old men for lunch. At 57, I am the baby of the group. These are incredibly intelligent men who were titans of their professional lives. Doctors, lawyers, judges, money managers, journalists, and leaders of major businesses. It is a diverse group politically. I love our discussions and the topics we cover. I learn new things every single week. The perspectives they have are fascinating and the deep, respectful conversations inspire me. I find myself wondering where these conversations have gone in our public discourse. How has the old Dan Akroyd-Jane Curtain Point/Counterpoint skit on Saturday Night Live in the 1970s, designed to mock intelligent debate and discourse, actually become reality? I remember watching these and laughing because they were so absurd and rude. How did this become our reality in 2025?
I have become a bigger fan of Bill Maher in the past year. He remains one of the few comedians who actually makes fun of what is happening in the world regardless of who needs to be made fun of. He criticizes all those who should be criticized, regardless of if they are a Democrat or a Republican. He has interesting guests on his show and talks about topics that should be discussed. He isn’t afraid to hold people accountable for what they say. Recently, he was invited to dinner at the White House with President Trump and rather than reject it immediately, he chose to go have dinner and talk with him. To engage and to learn. He shared what he learned on his April 11, 2025 show. Maher is a liberal. He publicly states that without pause. He is also more moderate and believes in conversation and discourse. Watch his report on his dinner at the White House with President Trump. It is an interesting insight into what can happen when you engage rather than withdraw.
Some people think Bill Maher drank the Kool-Aid. Some people think President Trump put on an act for him. Both may be true. I think Maher discovered that there is a deeper truth to what goes on than the media reports. I think he realized that perhaps he can disagree with the policies without burning down America. It is another lesson for us all to learn about the power of conversation and listening. It is a reminder that we really should be working to understand rather than to be understood.
So instead of writing, what have I been doing the past two weeks to deal with all that is going on in the world? I chose to infuse my life with joy. I have spent most of my time with my almost 4 month old chocolate lab puppy, Charlie (full name Charlotte). She is pure joy. She is happiness. In a world filled with so much trauma, so many challenges, and so much to worry about, time with Charlie is simple love and joy. Spending so much time with her, I get to focus on being happy with her unconditional love. I thought I’d finish this by sharing a few pictures and two videos to bring some light and joy to you.
The life of a dog – Charlie sure has it rough
Fester, our cat, showing Charlie who is boss. Watch his face as he walks away from Charlie.
The past two weeks have reminded me that while I must continue to fight, I don’t have to be consumed by the negativity. I can find those who care and want to work together to find solutions. I can spend time making sure the information I am consuming is factual. Most importantly, I can find joy in daily life and make sure to invest in that joy.
On their website, CBS states, “One of America’s most recognized and experienced broadcast journalists, Lesley Stahl has been a “60 Minutes” correspondent since 1991.” She should be embarrassed for her lead in to the interview she just did with Yarden Bibas for 60 minutes. Planting a false narrative to blame Israel, stating that Israel broke a ceasefire that expired when Hamas refused to move into phase 2 of the ceasefire, and holding Israel accountable for hostages being scared while kept in captivity, she showed herself to be a stooge for the media and their anti-Israel narrative.
When Yarden told her that the Hamas terrorists wouldn’t give them much food, she took the side of terrorists, trying to blame Israel by stating that perhaps they just didn’t have any food. Yarden corrected her that they did have food and would eat it front of her. That Hamas terrorists would tell them that they were giving them just enough food to keep them alive for 5 years in horrible conditions. He further told her that they learned that one of the terrorists liked massages so they would give him massages for extra food. Her response? Silence. No condemnation.
Watch the 60 minutes piece in which Yarden Bibas is interviewed.
Yarden tells her that they told him he would find a better wife and have better children after telling him that Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir were dead. Her response was “did they really say that?” and nothing more. It’s disgusting. As I watched the interview, I found her repugnant and the CBS angle an attempt to take the barbaric actions of Hamas and make them Israel’s fault.
The pain of the stories told in the piece were clear. The horrific actions of Hamas were clear. Yet Stahl and the editors at CBS were unmoved. There was no condemnation. No shock and awe at this inhumane treatment. As I watched it, I got the feeling that both Stahl and the bigwhigs at CBS believed that they deserved what they got. They seemed only sad that they had to cover it at all and shed any light on the proof of Hamas being evil and terrorists.
The piece ended and they transferred to 60 minutes Overtime, and additional online peace to extend the “conversation.” In 60 Minutes Overtime, Stahl talks with Keith and Aviva Siegel, the “Hamas militants” according to Stahl. She can’t even call them terrorists. Once again, she begins the interview and piece by framing Hamas as simply “militants”. She talks about Kibbutz Kfar Aza and shows a little bit of video from the Kibbutz but nothing that comes close to what it really looks like. I’ve been to Kfar Aza twice since October 7th and the things I saw there will never leave my mind. The brutality that occurred there is something I will never forget. The stories I heard from the IDF and from residents who lived there and had just returned are beyond horrific. Yet Stahl and CBS show none of these images. They minimize what happened that day.
The roof in one of the young people’s apartments, destroyed by grenades while she was there.
Listen to the description of what happened at this house in Kfar Aza. CBS and Lesley Stahl won’t tell you
When she reports on Keith’s release from captivity, she calls it a ‘bizarre ceremony’, quite an understatement for what it really was. Ongoing terrorism. Brutal treatment of a hostage.
The emotion from the hostages and the videos was clear. How anybody can watch and listen and not be horrified, not be offended, not believe that what happened is not just criminal but also not want to outwardly speak out against it is beyond my comprehension. Stahl and CBS show their bias throughout.
The CBS Overtime interview with Keith and Aviva Siegel
It goes beyond just CBS and Lesley Stahl. This week, Tal Shoham testified at the UN in Vienna. The UN has showed itself to hate Jews and hate Israel. There are decades of proof that they treat Israel and the Jews differently than any other group or country in the world. Read Shoham’s testimony – it’s difficult to get through. After reading it, try to defend Hamas in any way. Try to defend Hezbollah, the Houthis or Iran. It’s pure evil that must be eradicated.
Tal Shoham testifying at the UN in Viennna
“During these 50 days in isolation, shackled and starved, it was not ordinary hunger, but survival hunger, where a crumb becomes your entire world. When your body aches constantly from hunger pains.
On day 34 two human skeletons entered my room. Evyatar David and Guy Gilboa-Dalal. They told me they were beaten daily, forced to sit facing the wall, with bags over their heads, unable to move. If I thought my hunger was extreme, their was even worse. Their thirst was so intense that they would drink foul smelling salty toilet water contaminated with metals and filth.
In an act of deliberate cruelty, the terrorists forced Guy and Evyatar to watch me being released. Why, I ask you. Why would any human go to such length to inflict such torment.
During 505 days in captivity we were rarely not starving. There were many times we received just one pita bread for an entire day. We begged our captors, flattered them, even agreed to give them massages. Anything for another crumb of food. Traumatized by hunger, we collected crumb after crumb, dividing any grain of food after careful counting. Guy would sometimes spend an hour, ensuring fair distribution of every ounce.
You might assume this is the situation throughout Gaza. But the terrorists holding us always had abundant food, including fresh vegetables and fruits.
For the final 8 months of my captivity, we were held in a dungeon dozen of meter underground, with only a hole serving as a toilet. The humidity left our clothes and matrasses perpetually wet. We sweated and choked from lack of oxygen. In conditions so deplorable, no animal has ever been kept this way. We were constantly hungry and thirsty. Severe vitamin C deficiency caused Evyatar and me develop muscle inflammation.
Sadistic guards tortured us daily physically and mentally. Sometimes we were in darkness so profound, we could not see our hands in front of our faces. Meanwhile next door Hamas terrorists enjoyed a well-lit air conditioned room with plenty of food.
Hamas most dangerous weapon is not their rockets or their cruelty. It’s the fundamentalist education used to raise the next generation of terrorists. This education rejects the possibility of any state or people not governed by extreme Islamic law. In Hamas value system human life holds no worth. If we don’t recognize this, we live in illusion that will first doom Israel and then threaten the entire world. The International community must reject beliefs that foster terrorism.”
This is the reality of Hamas. They are not freedom fighters They are terrorists and pure evil. Those defending them are fools, bigots, and evil as well. Imagine being so thirsty that you would want to drink contaminated toilet water. Imagine being forced to humiliate yourself and give terrorists torturing and starving you massages for crumbs of food. Imagine living with constant hunger pains, choking from lack of oxygen…
Then imagine you are Leslie Stahl, hearing this firsthand. Talking to the parents of a current hostage who is being beaten, starved, and abused. Watch how she reacts with a flat affect. Watch and listen to how she responds. It’s as if she is a robot. No empathy. No compassion. As I watch her, I find myself thinking that she is trying to find a way to defend them, as she did earlier in the interview, and is upset that she can’t.
Watch and listen to Lesley Stahl and her lack of empathy, flat affect, and inability to condemn Hamas.
I am disgusted by Leslie Stahl and 60 minutes. How does she sleep at night? How do the higher ups at CBS keep their jobs? How do these people live with themselves?
How can the main stream media not make a major story as Hamas reduces their reported death toll by 3,400 names? They actually removed people’s names from the most recent death reports in Gaza, admitting they lied about people being killed who weren’t. For those who pay attention, this raises new concerns of inflated figures by Hamas.
This change included removing 1,000 children that had previously been reported killed in the war. Andrew Fox, associate fellow at the UK-based think tank Henry Jackson Society, was quoted stating, “If you were seeing indiscriminate killing, you would expect roughly 26% adult male deaths.” He continued, “In the 13 to 55 age group, which is Hamas’ fighter range because we know they use child soldiers, it’s 72% male in that age group.”
“So all these things clearly point towards combatants being targeted rather than just indiscriminate killing.”
Yet the media remains silent. CBS, 60 minutes and Lesley Stahl make sure to tell their story based on lies. You won’t see this in the NY Times or Washington Post. None of the other major networks will cover this. They prefer the lies.
I know that October 7th and the aftermath has become a part of who I am. I spoke out against all hatred before October 7th. Now, I will never stop speaking out against evil and hate. There may be consequences as a result. It may impact my business and who will work with me. I don’t care. The fight against evil and hate is too important. If people like the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Anwar Sadat, and Yitzak Rabin can risk, and lose, it all, then who am I to not be willing?
The Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., Anwar Sadat, and Yitzhak Rabin (A.I. generated picture).
At the end of the day, we all have to live with ourselves and our decisions. When I close my eyes at night, I must live with my decisions and actions. How I sleep is determined by my decisions and actions. I want to be an example of morals, ethics, and values to my children and eventually my grandchildren. My children know what I have done, said, and written since October 7th. They can answer the questions my future grandchildren may ask with stories of my visits to Israel, volunteering there, and show them what I have written to stand up to hate and evil. What about yours? What do you stand for? Will you be one of those people that your grandchildren look back upon and ask where you were? What you did? Why you were silent? Only you can answer that question. Know that it is NOT too late to start now. The fight against evil and hate is nowhere close to being over. Join in the fight. Stand for something that is based on morals, ethics, and values.
Or don’t, and let the future generation judge your inaction.
On his TV show this week, the comedian Bill Maher made fun of the Republicans and the Democrats and their unwillingness to cut the defense budget. He noted that there were only two things that they could agree on. Defense spending was one. The other, he joked, was to “Keep your eye on the Jews. You never know what they are up to.” He was kidding, sort of.
We live in a world I never imagined. A world which I read about growing up. Pogroms in Poland. Jews rounded up in Germany. Antisemitic propoganda believed as truth. Media spewing Jew hatred as facts. Growing up in a Jewish home where we went to synagogue every week, where I went to Hebrew school 3 times a week, we were taught about our history of being oppressed, of being outsiders, of being beaten and abused. We learned about the destruction of the first and second temple. We learned about the pogroms and the Shoah. We thought it was history and would never reoccur. We believed in the saying, “Never Again” and that the world believed it too. We were naive. Our parents were naive. Even our grandparents, who lived through the Shoah, were naive.
This week, Eli Sharabi, one of the hostages taken by Hamas on October 7th and held for 491 days before his release, spoke at the United Nations. He has previously spoken with President Trump and with Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister of England. His stories of torture and captivity are horrifying. They prove that Never Again was a lie. They prove that Jew hatred is alive and flourishing and what will happen to all of us if we allow it. If we stay silent. If we don’t fight back.
Eli Sharabi addressed the UN. It’s a must listen and watch.
I was talking with a friend today who, out of the blue, thanked me for my public advocacy and outspokenness since October 7th. I told him that we could not afford to be silent. We were no longer those Jews who were silent and went quietly. There are still plenty of Jews who think we can assimiliate and be accepted. They think that if we just go along, if we just put others before ourselves, if we just don’t make big fuss, they will leave us alone. They fail to learn the lessons of the Jewish people throughout our history. Those who hate us will never leave us alone. There is nothing we can do to just fit in and be ignored. As my friend Fleur Hassan Nahoum has so powerfully and eloquently stated, “The problem is not that there is no Palestinian State. The problem is that there is a Jewish State.” The problem is that we exist. When I listen to people like Bernie Sanders and Peter Beinart, I get sick to my stomach. They think we can survive by hiding, by helping those who want us dead.
Life is short. I was lucky to know all four of my grandparents until I was in my early 20s. My wife knew both my grandfathers. I knew all four of her grandparents. My kids knew all four of her grandparents. It makes life seem long. It’s a fallacy. My father died a few months before I turned 55. It wasn’t long enough and I wasn’t old enough. Life is short. We have to treasure every moment and we have to fight for it. Judaism teaches that those who save a life, save a world. That’s how precious it is to us. It is why we make these terrible deals with Hamas to get our hostages home, dead or alive.
My four grandparents with my brother and me
It is why we need to maximize what we do with our time. Just trying to wait things out doesn’t work. It’s why we need to treasure the relationships we have and not waste a minute of them. It’s why we have to speak out and speak up against evil and injustice. No perceived injustice but real injustice. Our world today loves to make up injustice. Lie on your green card application? Incite violence? Spew hatred? Violate the agreements you made to get your green card? As soon as there are consequences for your actions, you are the victim of injustice. Not those that you harmed. Not the system that you abused.
Our time is not guaranteed and we never know when our time is up. Today in Israel, an 85-year-old man, Moshe Horn from Kibbutz HaZore’a, was killed in a terror attack in northern Israel. The terrorist, 25-year-old Kerem Jabarin from Ma’ale Iron, carried out a car-ramming and shooting spree before being neutralized by Border Guard soldiers. Horn’s son, who was driving the vehicle with his father as the passenger, witnessed the attack and stopped the car. As he did so, his father was struck by the terrorist’s gunfire. A 20-year-old soldier suffered injuries caused by the vehicular attack and was evacuated to the Ramabam Hospital in Haifa.
Hate and terrorists ended an innocent man’s life. A man who wasn’t done living but who’s life was stolen from him. And, I found out a few hours after his murder, a man who is who related to a friend of mine. Jewish life is like that. There is no 7 degrees of separation (or Kevin Bacon) in the Jewish world. It’s one or two. I didn’t know Moshe, yet I know his family and now I grieve a little more with them. I will continue to stand up and speak out in Moshe’s (z’l) memory.
This past week, my friend Dave also died. It was unexpected. We spoke that morning and things were good. He died unexpectedly that night and was found the day after. I miss our daily conversations. I miss his jokes and how we laughted together. It is a reminder that we never know when our time is up. There are no guarantees in life.
Me with my friends Ron (left) and Dave (z’l) in the center.
Both Moshe and Dave woke up on the day they died with plans for that day and the future. Neither of them got another day to live. If we don’t know when it is our time, why would we waste a single day? Why would we tolerate the intolerable? Why would we enable hate? Why would we accept evil? Eli Sharabi experienced true evil for 491 days. Despite the horrific things he endured, he is choosing to speak out. He is choosing to share his pain with the world so that people understand what is really happening. If a man who endured 491 day of hell, who lost his wife and children to murderous terrorists, who came out of captivity looking like a Holocaust survivor, can have the courage to stand up and speak out, why can’t we? If you don’t have the courage to do it on your own, watch Eli do it and draw your courage from him. Draw it from Mia Schem and Emily Damari, two hostages who refuse to be silent about what they endured. Mia, who recently shared what happened to her and her fears of being pregnant. If they can do it, we have no excuse for not speaking out.
Mia Schem sharing what she experienced and her great fear
In memory of my friend Dave and Moshe Horn as well as all of those murdered by Hamas terorrists, in honor of Eli Sharabi and all those who are fighting through their own pain to speak out and share the horror with the world, I vow to never be silent. To stand up and speak out. To fight evil no matter the cost.
The world is the way it is today because we have allowed it. It is past the time to stop allowing it. If you want to live in a different and better world, it is up to you to take action. It is up to each of us to fight evil. We have our heroes to inspire us. I choose a better world. I choose to take action. What about you?
Eli Sharabi, a former Israeli hostage released by Hamas in Gaza last month, holds of a photograph of his wife and two daughters killed by Hamas, as he addresses a meeting of the United Nations Security Council at the U.N. headquarters in New York City, U.S, March 20, 2025. REUTERS/Mike Segar
Purim is one of my favorite holidays. It’s got a great story, an evil villian, a heroine that is tough to beat, and delicious triangle cookies. What’s not to love?
This year before Purim, I took the opportunity to learn a bit more about the story from a variety of teachers. It took me down a much deeper road with lots of lessons that apply to to our world today. I always enjoy when I find something in ancient texts that somehow team me a lesson for today’s world.
Purim is highlighted by a few major characters. Queen Esther, the heroine. A much deeper character to explore that the basic story presents. Her ‘uncle’ Mordechai, the hero. He pushes back against the evil villian and wins. Haman, the evil villian, who’s triangle hat becomes the Hamentaschen, the cookies we eat, at Purim. Haman, who’s name we drown out during the reading of the Megillah. King Achashvarosh, who divorces/murders his wife and marries Esther. And Queen Vashti, who refuses the King’s order/request, resulting in her divorce/death. I want to focus on Queen Esther here.
She was always one of my favorite charcters because of my Grandma Esther. Subconciously, there was always a connection to my Grandma Esther and Queen Esther. Plus dressing up, Purim carnivals, hamentaschen, and the fun makes Purim a special holiday for children. For much of my life, I thought of her as Morchechai’s niece who married the King to save the Jewish people. A wonderful and simple heroine. I never bothered to ask what happened to her when the story ends. I never bothered to ask if her ‘Uncle’ was really an uncle. I took it at face value and enjoyed the story.
Queen Esther as painted by the great Rembrandt. He painted many images from the Purim story.
It is much deeper than that. Jewish tradition and the talmud teaches us that Esther and Mordechai were actually husband and wife. The Talmud interprets the phrase “Mordecai adopted her as his own daughter” (Esther 2:7) as “Mordecai took her as his wife”. Think about what it must be like to be settled, married, and planning what your life will look like when all of a sudden your husband asks you to leave him and try to marry the King. Your husband who pushes you out of his bed and into the King’s bed. It is hard to believe that this is something that Esther wants to do or is looking forward to doing. I find myself wondering why shouldn’t just tank the interview to be Queen, find some way to ensure that the King will not pick her so she can return to her husband and her life. That’s the easy thing to do. Finish second, don’t strive to win, just be a part of the pack and be forgettable. Yet that isn’t what she does. Instead, she charms the King and he picks her to be his wife, forever ending any chance she has of returning to her life with Mordechai. She makes a huge sacrifice based entirely on trust and faith.
How often do we face challenges that require a sacrifice and we fail to do so? These aren’t always life changing challenges and yet we still are not willing to make the sacrifice for the greater good. History has shown us what happens when you fail to make the sacrifice for the greater good. When you put yourself first and the world or your community second. True leaders are willing to make that sacrifice. It doesn’t mean they aren’t afraid of the cost. Instead, they are very afraid of the cost yet go ahead and do it anyway. That’s leadership. Queen Esther did what was needed at great cost to herself and her life. She gave up the life she knew for the greater good.
Queen Esther took a risk when she told King Achashveros that she was Jewish. There was no guarantee that the King would choose her over Haman. She couldn’t be sure that the King wouldn’t be disgusted with her and get rid of her like he did with Queen Vashti. She didn’t have to take the risk to tell him. She was safe. Like many people in today’s world, she was a hidden Jew. She could have stayed quiet, stayed hidden, and lived a full life. But she didn’t. She is the example to us today that no matter how good we have it in our country, at the end of the day, we will always be seend as Jews first. Jews in Germany who had prominent roles in the military, the government, and business got no special dispensation from the Nazis. They were Jews first. Our Jewish legislators who think they are safe because they defend the rights of others at the cost of the Jews are merely fooling themselves. Queen Esther showed us the way.
I look at many of our leaders today, both in and out of the Jewish community, and wonder why they aren’t following Queen Esther’s lead. Very few are willing to actually put it on the line and take the risk of losing their power and position to do what is right. There are the exceptions. Senator John Fetterman has been outspoken and lately there have been pieces written about the cost he has paid as a result. The Wall Street Journal wrote a piece about him being the “Lonliest Democrat in Washington”.
He has spoken out repeatedly against Hamas and those who defend them. He is a throwback to the days when America didn’t negotiate with terrorists, when terrorist was evil without any excuse. He is a true leader who is going to do what is right, regardless of the personal consequences.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has done the same, talking about the evil of Hamas and revoking the green cards of those who incite violence and support terrorist organizations. He is unequivative is his condemnation of Hamas and those who support them.
Reporter: "Your revocation of the green card to many is seen as one of the most anti-speech actions a Secretary can take with his powers. How do you respond?"@MarcoRubio's response is fierce and factual ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/uVwJy30dVo
We simply don’t have enough of these leaders in the Democratic or Republican party. We have far too many Bernie Sanders, who blames Israel when Hamas won’t agree to ceasefires, won’t release the hostages, and remains responsible. We have Thomas Massie on the right, who is an open antisemite. We have people like Rashida Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, and Pramila Jayapal on the left who are so far into their Jew hatred that they could be mistaken for Marjorie Taylor-Greene or Lauren Boebert with their hatred. Queen Esther teaches us all that we must stand up for what is right, regardless of the personal cost. The greater good matters.
As a Jew, the ending of the story of Purim was always a happy one. Like most Jewish stories, they tried to kill us, we won, let’s eat. However the story ends differently for Queen Esther. She doesn’t go back to her regular life after Haman is hung and Mordechai promoted. She doesn’t get to leave the castle and stop being Queen or the wife of King Achashverosh. Her sacrifice is truly one for her entire life. Often times we think it is just for the length of the story. That the things we are willing to give up, the choices that we make are only going to be temporary. Queen Esther reminds us that is not always the case. There are times when the sacrifice we make is much greater and lasts much longer. It doesn’t change the importance or significance of that sacrifice. The megillah continues after Queen Esther tells King Achashverosh she is Jewish and Haman wants to kill her and her people. The story continues about the role of Mordechai and the gifts and power he is given. Esther falls into the background. Her work is done but her sacrifice is not done. It is one she continues to make on a daily basis for the rest of her life.
That’s the lesson about sacrifice. It’s for the greater good and must be willing to pay the price regardless of how much it may be. The cost of not making the sacrifice is far greater. We see this with the IDF soldiers and the people of Israel. Since October 7th, they have made incredible sacrifices. Many have lost their lives. Their families have been changed forever. Children have spent most of the year without their parent(s) who have had to serve in milium (reserves). Incredible instability with rockets falling daily, war all around, funerals on a regular basis due to the war, many forceably relocated for safety. Soldiers facing PTSD and their lives changed forever. Hostages who endured unbelievable torture. Every Saturday night there are massive protests against the government and demands to release the hostages. The leaders of these efforts pay a high price. Those who commit to be there pay a high price.
One of my friends was a high level commander in Gaza during the first four months of the war. The price he paid was easy to see when we got together after those four months. Just recently, he was one of the commanders in charge of the hostage releases during phase 1 of the ceasefire. He shared how difficult and painful that was for him. What he experienced on October 7th, the first four months of the war, and managing the hostage releases will stay with him for life. He is not the same person he was on October 6th. Like Queen Esther, he was willing to make the sacrifices that were necessary, regardless of the personal cost.
There are lessons to be learned from Queen Esther beyond being proud of being Jewish and standing up for the Jewish people to those in power. The lesson of sacrifice is key among them. The lesson of the greater good. The lesson of standing up for what is right regardless of the cost. Nowhere in the Megillah does it recount Queen Esther complaining to Mordechai that she did her job and now is stuck for the rest of her life. That’s true leadership.
True leadership is remembering that it is a sacrifice, not a privilege. It is an obligation not a coronation. This applies in our political arena as well as our Jewish organizations. The lesson of George Washington only serving two terms and our Founding Fathers wanting to get home to their families and their lives rather than serve forever in Washington DC has been lost. Their willingness to sacrifice their personal success and time with their familes for the greater good has been lost. The Israeli people are showing us what it looks like. People stepping up to serve much longer than required. People letting their spouses serve and figuring out how to raise children and pay the bills without one of the parents being there. People leaving the government because they fundamentally disagree with decisions being made. People peacefully protesting every single week because they want to see change. It’s time to bring it back. It is time for us to do our part. Otherwise we are letting evil win. I, for one, refuse to do that. What about you?
Mahmoud Khalil was arrested and set for deportation. This was because of his criminal actions, although many on the left have made this a free speech issue. I have found this to be beyond appalling. They won’t stand up when Hamas invades Israel and murders, rapes, beheads, and kidnaps civilians. They won’t stand up when Hamas uses human shields. They won’t stand up when Hamas and Hezbollah fire rockets at Israel on a daily basis for almost an entire year. They won’t stand up when the UN and UNRWA have employees that participate in the October 7th invasion, rape, murder, and kidnapping. They won’t stand up with UNRWA is found to be hiding hostages in their hospitals and schools. They won’t stand up when Hamas strangles two children under the age of 5, brutally murders their mother, and brutalizes their bodies to attempt to hide how they murdered them.
They will stand up when a Jew hater who breaks the law is arrested and is going to be deported. They will stand up to defend an institution like Columbia University who violates Title VI and doesn’t protect Jewish students when some of their Federal funding is cut. It disgusts me. It infuriates me. It makes me want to throw my arms in the air and wonder if there is a future for Jews in the United States. When it is also done by Jews, I wonder how can they be so stupid. How can they look at our history and repeat the same behavior in 1930s Germany? How can they repeat the behavior that led to the destruction of the first and second Temple?
Senator Chuck Schumer has become one of the worst. I heard him speak at the AIPAC Policy Summit in 2024 didn’t believe a word that he said because of his actions. I heard his speak at the rally in DC before the JFNA General Assembly in November 2024 when his words were so irrelevant that the audience didn’t listen to a word he said. Where the audience openly booed him. A man who previously claimed that he was “Schumer the shomer,” which means guardian in Hebrew. He promised the Jewish people that he didn’t just have their back, he also had their front. Schumer promised that he would always stand sentry before the Jewish community. What he didn’t say is that he would have our back so he could stab us in it. He would have our front so he could catch us as we fell after he stabbed us in the back. He would stand sentry and do nothing as people tried to kill us, tried to finish what Hitler started, and actively defend those who attempted this genocide.
Schumer’s statement about Mahmoud Khalil is a perfect example of this. He covers his behind with pithy statements that mean nothing and that he did nothing about. He cites the 8 month pregnant wife as significant while having ignored the pregnant wife of US citizen Sagui Dekel-Chen who was taken hostage on October 7th. He ignores the Title VI violates, he ignores the requirements of the immigration status Khalil has and the violations of that agreement, he ignores the process of deportment that is currently ongoing and instead defends the Jew hater and the behavior that terrorizes Jewish students.
Schumer embarrassingly wrote:
I abhor many of the opinions and policies that Mahmoud Khalil holds and supports, and have made my criticism of the antisemitic actions at Columbia loudly known. Mr. Khalil is also legal permanent resident here, and his wife, who is 8-months pregnant, is an American citizen. While he may well be in violation of various campus rules regarding how the protests were conducted last year, that is a matter for the university to pursue, and I have encouraged them to be much more robust in how they combat antisemitism and maintain a harassment-free campus that protects the safety and security of Jewish and other students. The Trump administration’s DHS must articulate any criminal charges or facts that would justify his detention or the initiation of deportation proceedings against him. If the administration cannot prove he has violated any criminal law to justify taking this severe action and is doing it for the opinions he has expressed, then that is wrong, they are violating the First Amendment protections we all enjoy and should drop their wrongheaded action.
Seth Mandel wrote this scathing piece about Schumer in November 2024. Who would have imagined that it would get worse. Who imagined that if the piece was being writing in March 2025 Schumer would look even worse.
Of course we have one of our favorite Jew haters, Rashinda Tlaib, chiming in. She makes sure to use the words, “bring him home”, appropriating the language used for the hostages taken by Hamas. Hostages that Tlaib doesn’t care about. Khalil wasn’t illegeally abducted, he was legally arrested. He was taken to appropriate facility and it is public knowledge. He will have a deportation hearing and based on the results of that hearing, he will either be deported or he won’t. That is our rule of law. It is being applied based on the actions of Khalil. Tlaib doesn’t care. She doesn’t believe in the rule of law when it comes to Jew haters and Jews. She is an utter disgrace to the US House of Representatives and the United States but gets defended by those who hate the Jews.
The Senate Judiciary Democrats pile on to the Jew hatred and defense of terrorists and those who not only hate Jews but act on that hatred. They wonder why the country didn’t re-elect them in the last election and have no introspection. David Hogg, Vice Chair of the Democratic National Committee (DNC), doubles down on the positions that led to the Democrats losing. He continues the lie of ‘abduction’ instead of arrest. He ignores the actual process related to deportation and Khalil’s immigration status to apply false regulations that do not apply. It is not a constitutional violation. It is not a first amendment issue. It’s not based on freedom of speech, it is based on what he did. Just like you are not allowed to yell fire in a crowded movie theater, there are limitations to speech, especially when you have a green card and are not a citizen.
“Immigration law does allow the federal government to deport noncitizens, even people who are green card holders,” over certain offenses or certain kinds of behavior, said Adam Cox, a law professor and immigration expert at New York University. The key is applying the law and as of now, the government has done that. This is the process. The government will have to prove their case, show that he committed these offenses or was involved in this specific type of behavior. The demands of Schumer, Tlaib, the Senate Judiciary Democrats, David Hogg, and so many others, are to not apply the law and instead treat him differently because his target is the Jews.
Maya Sulkin of The Free Press (and the daughter of friends of mine) discusses the realities of Khalil’s actions clearly. “This is someone who has been the engine behind so much of the violence we have seen on campus since October 7th”. Watch and listen to her explain the realities. While the mainstream media will highlight the Jew haters in Congress calling this freedom of speech and the protesters who hide their faces and don’t understand the law calling it freedom of speech, this is about inciting violence. About taking away the rights of others.
So lets look at the actual law, not just throw out ‘free speech’. The 1952 Immigration and Nationality Act states that if the Secretary of State has “reasonable grounds” to believe than a non-citizen poses “potentially serious adverse foreign policy and national security interests of the Unites State of America” they have grounds to deport that individual. No crime has to be committed and no criminal conviction is required. This includes anybody with a U.S. visa or a green card. That is Mahmoud Khalil’s immigration status and what the government, through Secretary of State Marco Rubio, is asserting. Note that it’s not up you or me to determine the reasonable grounds nor what the adverse interest may be, but only the government through the Secretary of State.
The facts matter. Understanding freedom of speech matters. Applying the law in an appropriate manner matters. As we have seen with the Jew haters, they don’t care about the law. They don’t care about following the rules and regulations except when it benefits them. They make things up and create their own reality in the face of the law and in the face of fairness. Khalil has been deeply involved in the unrest at Columbia since October 7, 2023 including the April 2024 takeover of Hamilton Hall in which maintenance workers were held against their will and the building was damaged. He was actively giving interviews to the Hamas-aligned Quds News Network with openly pro-Hamas signs and supported the right to resist ‘by all available means.’ The right to free speech is core to our country but there are limits as the supreme court has ruled. The law says that the government has the right to revoke his immigration status and green card and deport him if they deem him a serious risk to our national security. Like it or not, that’s the law. If you don’t like it, change the law, don’t choose to not apply it and lie about it.
Meanwhile, anytime there is an opportunity to criticize Israel or the Jews, you can count on Peter Beinart to speak up. He makes his own realities and somehow continues to be given a platform. Beinart, a self-hating Jew, is always on the wrong side of every issue when it comes to Israel and the Jews. I met him in 2015 when he spoke in Seattle. I listened to what he had to say to understand his point of view. What I came to understand is that he hates Israel. He hates the Jews. He will side with our enemies and the Jew haters EVERY SINGLE TIME. Now he chooses to use the holiday of Purim, about to be celebrated this week, as a reason to slander Israel and the Jewish people. He disgusts me. Somehow he thinks that when they kill us all, they will spare him because he was on their side. He doesn’t bother to learn the lessons from history that they hate us all.
Yet there are those who get it. There are those who actually stand on a moral high ground. Senator John Fetterman continues to speak out. He is unwavering in his fight against evil. He has recently begun to discuss the cost of being principled. How other Democrats shun him. He doesn’t care. He will do what is right regardless of the consequences. He earns my respect regularly and that respect grows each time he stands up and speaks out. I hope that he inspires others to do so. I hope that his principles inspire you and others to also speak out for what’s right. Not to believe the lies. To get educated.
We are in a war between good and evil. Hamas and their supporters are evil. As long as we allow evil to exist, it will continue to grow. Good doesn’t defeat evil by simply making it a little smaller. Good defeats evil by eliminating evil. We know that Hamas hates Israel and the Jews. Don’t forget that they call Israel and the Jews, “little Satan”. It is the United States they call “Great Satan”. People like Mahmoud Khalil go after Israel and the Jews because they can. Their ultimate target is the United States and the West. We have our laws for a reason. Let’s make sure we enforce them. The fools who defend those who want them dead can kick and scream and cry all they want. They are on the wrong side of history. Time for you to choose. Do you want to ensure your freedom or do you want to empower those who want you dead to make that happen. This isn’t a Republican or Democrat issue. This isn’t a Biden or Trump issue. Look at the words of Secretary of State Tony Blinken and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. They know it is an existential threat to us all. Fight evil with all you have because if evil wins, we all lose.
We have seen the pictures and videos of the hostages coming out of Gaza. They are horrifying. The images of Eli Sharabi, Ohad Ben Ami and Or Levy when they were released was horrifying. It was like watching the survivors of the Nazi death camps all over again.
Eli was brave enough to share his story in a powerful interview. It won’t be shown on 60 minutes or Dateline. It won’t be widely publicized through the western media. The question is if you will have the courage to watch the entire interview. To hear his story of captivity and torture. To experience the evil that he did. And then, will you share the interview? Will you talk about the interview? Will you make sure others see and hear the truth. The video is below. The decision is yours.
Yarden Bibas, who was kidnapped, abused, tortured, and held hostage by Hamas along with his wife Shiri (z’l), and children Ariel (z’l) and Kfir (z’l) spent 484 days in captivity. After his release we all learned that the rest of his family had been murdered by Hamas a month or so after being taken hostage. Brutally murdered, their bodies desecrated afterwards to attempt to hide how they were strangled by their evil Hamas captors. Yarden wrote a powerful letter to Prime Minister Netanyahu this week. In many ways it speaks for the Jewish people. Get the hostages back and then destroy Hamas.
Yarden Bibas giving the eulogy for his wife and two beautiful children, murdered by Hamas
Here os full letter that Yarden Bibas wrote:
Mr. Prime Minister, My name is Yarden Bibs, and while they read my speech to you, I sit Shiva on my wife Shiri and my children Kfir and Ariel. Innocent and innocent children who were kidnapped from their homes and murdered captive. They could have and should have been saved.
The cursed terrorists conquered Nir Oz with flip-flops, my family and I were brutally kidnapped from our home to Gaza.
On that cursed morning, the state was not in Nir Oz. There were only local heroes – members of readiness classes and brave fighters, who did everything they could and even paid with their lives. And today, 514 days later – I returned from Gaza to an unimaginable reality in which I was forced to bury my entire family in one day. I don’t wish this horrible nightmare on anyone. And despite the terrible pain, I ask you at this moment to stop. The stage of revenge has not yet reached. At this point we are obligated to immediately return our brothers, including my best friend David Kunyo and his brother Ariel. David, my friend from the first grade, the neighbor from the Kibbutz, who fell in the Hamas tunnels. I know I won’t be able to hug my children and wife anymore. But Emma and Yuli – David’s daughters, who were kidnapped by themselves to Gaza when they were only 3 years old, are waiting to hug him. Sharon’s wife deserves to hug him.
After we bring back David and all the hostages, I will be the first to support all your actions to overthrow Hamas. As a resident of Nir Oz, I know that we will be forced to defeat Hamas because otherwise we will not have security, but we must always preserve the sanctity of life, the honor of the dead and leave no one behind, otherwise we have lost who we are. Mister Prime Minister, 514 days and nights have already passed and you and your government still have not taken responsibility. The demand to set up a state inquiry committee is a demand that with israel united around it – 83% of israel citizens demand it, along with 1,500 October Council families and I am among them. Its goal is not personal persecution, but to produce lessons to prevent the next disaster. I call you Mr. Prime Minister – unite the nation israel give calm to our souls, uphold the will of the people and the families. Inform today about the establishment of a state inquiry committee that will strengthen the security of Israel prevent another disaster, and give me and everyone with israel answers.
How did it happen that nine-month-old Kfir, and four-year-old Ariel were kidnapped and murdered together with Shiri’s mother in unimaginable cruelty?
How did we get to the point that during the long hours at the police station no one came to save us? I keep thinking and regretting that I didn’t take better care of my wife and kids. It is eating me up inside. And I only had a gun and I will be a simple citizen in a quiet kibbutz. Do you think about it? Do you also find it difficult to get through day and night without a heavy sense of responsibility for what happened? Are you able to say this loud and clear?
So many citizens are asking for forgiveness. So few politicians apologize.
So many civilians and fighters taking responsibility. So few members of government take responsibility. My sister Ofri said at the funeral a sentence that I deeply connect with: “Forgiveness means accepting responsibility and a commitment to act differently, learning from mistakes.” There is no point in forgiving before the defectors are investigated, and all position holders will be held accountable. Our disaster as a nation and ours as a family should not have happened, and it must not, must not happen again. “I have no interest in closing account of the past, I try to gather strength and look ahead. I ask that we all do our best to make it better, more close and stronger here. From the window of the car that led us on the funeral journey, I saw the people of israel I saw a broken country – religious, secular and ultra-orthodox, standing together with flags and tears. I felt like they were really with me. I didn’t know them but I felt they were my brothers and sisters. What are you doing in leadership to maintain this togetherness? Do you get up every morning to separate or to strengthen us a little more from the inside? In my eyes it’s not less important your role than sending planes to eliminate enemies. This is our strength. This is our spirit.
In conclusion, I appeal to you Mr. Prime Minister, I have not yet entered my home in Nir Oz and I do not know what awaits me inside. I’m asking you to come along with me, to join me for the first time since October 7. I ask we do it together. If we do not look disaster in the eye, we cannot recover.“
Yaron Bibas letter published in many newspapers
This should be the lead on the news. After having his wife and two babies murdered by Hamas, he is not calling for vengence. He wants the rest of the hostages home. He also acknowledges the evil of Hamas and that they must be destroyed but the lives of the hostages come first. Despite the lies of the media, despite Hamas using child soldiers and human shields, the humanity of Israel is real and continues to be hidden, the lies continue to be told, and the world continues to believe them.
Amotz Eyal
My friend Amotz Eyal is the founder and CEO of TPS-IL. It’s something you have probably never heard of. Until I met Amotz, I hadn’t either. TPS-IL, officially known as The Press Service of Israel, is an Israeli news bureau. It is the equivilant of AP and Reuters only when it comes to reporting from and about Israel, TPS-IL is actually factual. Their reach across the globe, outside of America, is incredible. Last month, Amotz was in Orlando and we spent two days together. I learned so much, not just about TPS-IL but also about him.
On October 7, 2023, Amotz got a phone call that something was happening but the photographers couldn’t get there to document it. Of course he volunteered to go take pictures and video, even though he is the CEO. He told his wife he would be home by dinner. As he began taking pictures, he quickly realized that this wasn’t something small and he put his camera away and moved towards the fighting. He ended up in Sderot and took over operational command to defend the city against the Hamas invaders. He ended up home 3 months later. He is still active in the IDF, commanding an elite unit. The first morning in Orlando, he stood outside our first appointment on the phone with his unit, planning their raid of Jenin to eliminate terrorists and capture weapons. He hung up the phone, joined me for our meetings that day as if nothing was happening. The next day he showed me pictures of the weapons they captured in Jenin. If only the mainstream media (MSM) would cover what really happens.
Hamas child soldiers. This is what the Jew haters are defending.
Amotz just wrote a powerful piece in the Jerusalem post titled, Propaganda without boundaries: How Hamas exploits, abuses, weaponizes children. It should be on the front page of every newspaper, covered by every major news network, but it won’t. You can read it and see just how Hamas is inculcating hate, using children as weapons and as soldiers. It is horrifying.
The truth is cleverly hidden by the media that we see and the narrative that they tell us and want us to believe. A perfect example is the recent ‘documentary’, No Other Land, about Masafer Yatta in Judea and Samaria (often called the West Bank). The truth of the village is very different than what this alleged documentary claims and what the mainstream western media tells you. Read the article by Honest Reporting and learn the real history.
If you want another source to read, check out the JNS article about Masafer Yatta. The truth is out there. Documented history is out there. You can choose to find out what the truth really is or you can believe what you are being fed. The choice is entirely yours.
It gets worse. Oscar-winning Pallywood star Basel Adra of NoOtherLandwas caught on video, lying about what happened. Here he is setting fire to Palestinian structures —but telling people to say “the Jews did it” for the cameras. Facts don’t matter. The truth doesn’t matter. The media determines the story they want to tell and makes up what they need to tell it. My blood boils when I see it happen over and over and over again and nobody held accountable.
Basel Adra, now an Oscar Winning Director of a documentary that lies, is shown lying on film.
Yesterday, President Trump met in the Oval Office with eight hostages that have been released. I found this video of their interaction incredibly powerful. A few quotes really stood out for me. “Horrible, horrible stories. Not even believable.” Then, “Don’t worry, we’ll get them out.” I don’t care what you think of President Trump. Love him or hate him, it doesn’t matter. These are statements that are long overdue. You can see and hear from these 8 hostages what powerful words and actions mean to them and the hostages still in captivity. Our media will not run the stories of these hostages. The media will not highlight the torture that they endured. Freedom of the press was designed so that the press would be able to report the truth, not so they could hide behind it and lie over and over and over again. Yet that is what we are seeing. Lie after lie.
Over a decade ago, I had the opportunity to learn about a new organization, Fuente Latina, that was doing something unbelievable. Having learned that Iran was targeting the Spanish speaking world with anti-Israel propoganda and lies, founder Leah Soibel decided to create a pro-Israel media outlet to share the truth with the Spanish speaking world. In the dozen years since, the work they have done is incredible. In 2024, they took over 100 journalists from Spanish speaking countries to Israel to see with their own eyes what happend on October 7th and what Israel is really like. The content they provide to the Spanish speaking world is incredible.
They created an incredible 4 part docuseries about October 7th that focuses on the Latin Americans that were murdered and taken hostage on October 7th. Most people don’t know that Latin Americans were the largest immigrant group attacked on October 7th or that the Bibas family is Argentinian. I watched the trailer and was captivated. I don’t speak Spanish and as I listened to the tone of their voices and read the subtitles, I was overwhelmed. There was something about watching these people tell their stories, while in Israel, living as Israelis, and speaking Spanish, not Hebrew, that was incredibly powerful. Once again, you won’t see this on 60 minutes or Dateline. You won’t see this type of reporting in our mainstream media. The truth has to fight ten times harder to overcome the lies. Watch the trailer. I’ve seen it half a dozen times or more and it gets me every single time. I can’t wait for the docuseries to be available.
Fuente Latina’s trailer for the docuseries. I can’t wait to see the full series. Incredibly powerful.
So what do you want to do? Do you want to be a lemming who believes the lies they are told? Do you want to ensure you are on the wrong side of history? Do you want to find real information and fight for truth and against the lies. Are you willing to do the work it takes in today’s world to get beyond consuming whatever those in charge want to feed you and instead learn for yourself?
I always go back to the great CBS anchorman Walter Cronkite for inspiration. He knew his job was to share the news, the facts, and the truth and let the viewer consume, digest, and interpret. His tag line, “and that’s the way it is” was the gold standard and his newscasts should be required viewing for all those who are a part of the media today. His final broadcast as the anchorman of the CBS Evening news, ironically enough March 6, 1981, was a classic, but in hindsight, he was very wrong. He talks about a supurb team of journalists and unfortunately that isn’t the case any longer. The news is part of the entertainment division and they are going to tell you a story, the story they want to tell, and it is up to you to decide if you want to consume it. Far too many people don’t understand they are now watching a story created by the entertainment division, not getting the facts. The hardest thing to hear him say is, “and none of that will change.” Walter was very wrong. It has changed.
Each time I write this blog, I think of Walter Cronkite, because I’m going to tell it like it is, or at least how I see it. I’m tired of lies. I’m tired of being fed BS by those with their own agenda. I’ve long tired of being told by others who is good and who bad, who is right and who is wrong, what I should believe in and what I should fight against. The days of Walter Cronkite being the voice and face you could trust to give you the facts are long gone. Now it’s up to each of us to be our own Walter Cronkite. Are you up for the challenge?
In January 2025, the Palm Beach Post’s editorial page editor Tony Doris decided to run a political cartoon about the hostages being released from over a year of captivity in Gaza by the terrorist organization Hamas. Doris, who is Jewish, somehow thought that politicizing the kidnapping and torture of innocent civilians was appropriate. The cartoon itself, places no blame or responsibility on Hamas, who invaded Israel, murdered, raped, beheaded, kidnapped, and tortured those they encountered. Even the headline, “a year of merciless war” is clearly a political mistatement as there was no war until Hamas invaded on October 7, 2023 and kidnapped the hostages. It doesn’t reflect any of the terrorists killed in the 40,000 number or any of those killed by Hamas. It is a symbol of the increased Jew hatred and what is wrong with our media.
The Jewish Federation of Palm Beach immediately addressed the cartoon, taking out a full page ad in the newspaper the following Sunday. Gannett, the owners of the newspaper, took the allegation seriously and met with leadership to address the publication of the cartoon, even admitting that the proper protocals were not followed and had they been followed, the cartoon would not have run. They suspended Doris and investigated the situtation before firing him a week later for violating company policy.
“The cartoon did not meet our standards. We sincerely regret the error and have taken appropriate action to prevent this from happening again.” stated Lark-Marie Anton, a Palm Beach Post spokesperson.
Yet it was not until this week, the first week of March, that the firing became public. Both Doris and Jeff Danziger, who drew the cartoon, gave the typical pithy defense. They were criticizing war. They were criticizing the policy of the Israeli government. One is a war veteran so he ‘knows’ what he is talking about. The other is Jewish and believes Israel has a right to exist (but not to defend herself when attacked and not to hold those who invade, murder, rape, kidnap, and torture civilians responsible). Thankfully the leadership of the Federation spoke up. Thankfully Gannett didn’t buy the BS being offered this time. It’s a big deal and shows what standing up and speaking out can do. Neither Doris or Danziger will ever understand what was wrong with the cartoon and choosing the publish it. Neither will ever admit the inherent Jew hatred in drawing and publishing the cartoon. They were held accountable for their actions, which is a big change from what we have seen since October 7th.
To understand how disgusting the cartoon and the hatred that is behind it really are, read the article about the interview with Eli Sherabi, released after 491 days of captivity. A few highlights. Near lynching (by civilians). Starvation. Beatings. Monthly showers with a half a bucket of cold water. “A year and four months shackled by my legs, with chains that wrap around me, with very, very heavy locks that tear at your flesh.”
Eli Sherabi, a hostage in Gaza for 491 days.
His interview has gotten no publicity in the United States. His description of the horrors he faced are not a main story. The evilness of Hamas is not on display because the media doesn’t think it will sell. I urge you to read the interview. It is hard to read, hard to imagine what he and the others endured, hard to believe the world sat idly by. The Red Cross and UN are proven to be worse than I even thought when I think of how complicit they are in what he and others endured. If Eli could endure his captors’ torture, the least I can do is speak out. The least I can do is use my voice and fight back against the Jew hatred. I have the easy part. Any time I think what I have to do is difficult, all I have to do is reread the interview and remember what Eli endured is hard. The rest is not.
The stupidity of antisemites never fails to amaze me. I saw this exchange and rather than make me angry, it made me laugh and cry just a little bit. It’s like those who deny Jews lived in Israel and Jerusalem before Islam and can’t understand why we built a holy wall for our Temple beneath Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa Mosque.
If I had to bet, lorrie is either a bible thumper who can quote the story of the sale of Joseph into slavery and his interpretation of Phaoroah’s dreams or a major fan of broadway who has seen Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat multiple times. Yet can’t put two and two together.
I wrote about the Academy Awards and specifically about the accusation made by Basel Adra, one of the Directors of the award winning film, No Other Land. Since then, as result of Adra’s blatent lie, accusing Israel of ethnic cleansing, I have done a little bit of research into the story behind the movie. What I have learned is fascinating. It also both debunks the premise of the movie and highlights just how prevelant antisemitism is in Hollywood and how much they like to promote lies about the Jewish homeland. This is what was written about the movie and the story they tell.
The Film ‘No Other Land’ Sparked Significant Controversy.
In reality, the film is based on a complete Palestinian falsehood known as “Masafer Yatta.” Let’s talk about it for a bit.
First of all, the film tells the story of Masafer Yatta. The film attempts to convey the narrative that Palestinians have lived there for hundreds of years and that Israel suddenly decided to evict them. In reality, this was abandoned land that nomadic Bedouins occasionally used for grazing and sometimes took shelter in the caves there.
In fact, Palestinian construction in the area only began in the 1990s. Before that, there were caves that Bedouins used as seasonal dwellings. The most important point: Until 1993, the Israeli Air Force conducted attack training in the area. These were full-scale military exercises—of the kind that made permanent residence impossible. This fact alone proves that no permanent settlement existed there.
Only in 1999 did Palestinians file a petition with the court. The simple reason? Until then, the area was of no importance to them, and no one lived there permanently. It’s also worth noting that even afterward, they never presented any ownership documents.
Summary: Palestinians have never provided evidence that the area belonged to them. Even more striking, it was only many years after the military had been active there that they began constructing homes.
The judge rebuked the petitioners for exploiting the legal battle to continue illegal construction, even though the court had conditioned its injunctions against demolition on a halt to further illegal building.
In other words: All the demolition footage was staged. They built in a prohibited area precisely so that the IDF would demolish their homes, allowing them to document and publicize it.
A side note relevant to the previous point:
At 11:15 in the film, they explicitly discuss their strategy to prevent what they fear most: “I think we can stop the eviction. It will happen if we document and work on the ground.”
It’s astounding how openly Palestinians reveal their well-worn tactic that Israel has been blind to for years: provoking a confrontation, standing by with cameras, and capturing the perfect moment. This is textbook Pallywood. Anyone familiar with Palestinian tactics—not Westerners unfamiliar with their methods—knows that this means: “Let’s stir up trouble, capture the perfect moment, edit around it, and publish.”
This is the same trick they’ve used thousands of times: A soldier turns his rifle, they freeze the frame the moment it’s aimed at a civilian, and they frame it as if he is targeting an innocent bystander.
By the way, the Arabic word ‘Masafer’ means ‘nothing.’ Many believed the area was worthless.
What bothered me personally the most was the use of children. And it’s a shame Hollywood enables this. The same way they arm their children and encourage them to commit acts of terror, The same way Hamas builds tunnels under schools, The same way they always send their children—whom they love less than they hate us—into the line of fire, hoping they’ll get hurt so they can parade them in front of cameras, That’s exactly how children were used in this film.
Why use children and force them to live in a conflict zone solely for political purposes?
Did you know they even stole the film’s title from the Jews?
Summary: Why are Palestinians trying to seize Masafer Yatta?
The Palestinian push to take over Masafer Yatta is not coincidental and not simply a ‘survival struggle’ as international media portrays it. This is a well-planned strategy motivated by demographic, political, and territorial considerations in the battle for control of the West Bank.
1. Creating ‘facts on the ground’ as part of the fight for Area C 2. Masafer Yatta is in Area C—territory under full Israeli control according to the Oslo Accords. 3. The Palestinian Authority knows it has no official authority there, so it promotes illegal construction to establish footholds and turn them into permanent settlements.
The goal?
1. International pressure leading to de facto recognition of Palestinian control over the land.2. Establishing Palestinian territorial continuity and breaking Jewish settlement 3. Masafer Yatta lies between southern Hebron and the Negev—a strategic area linking West Bank 4. Palestinian communities with Bedouin populations in the Negev. 5. Palestinian control there isolates Jewish settlements, preventing Jewish territorial continuity between the Negev and the Hebron region.
European Union & international support
1. The EU directly funds illegal Palestinian construction in the area, despite it being a designated military firing zone. 2. Palestinians receive financial and logistical aid from European left-wing NGOs looking to push an anti-Israel narrative by manufacturing a “forced eviction crisis.”
Exploiting legal and media platforms
1. Palestinians use courts and media to frame the issue as “forced displacement of traditional residents,” even though the area was historically used only for grazing, not for permanent settlement. 2. Branding the conflict as a ‘human rights project’ recruits global support and hinders Israeli sovereignty enforcement.
Conclusion: This is a strategic battle, not a defense of ‘ancient villages.’ The Masafer Yatta narrative as “historical villages” is not backed by facts—permanent settlement began only in the 1990s. The real goal is political: To create Palestinian territorial continuity, isolate Jewish communities, and weaken Israeli control over Area C. The use of media and courts is a calculated move to generate international pressure and solidify Palestinian presence as an irreversible reality.
This isn’t about “another Israeli injustice”—it’s a deliberate strategic operation backed by European funding and a manipulated narrative.
To mock this film and the way it takes lies and spins it into truth, a fake sequel was created based on October 7th. It is ironic, sad, pathetic, anger inducing, and ultimately a good view into how the world enables terrorists to tell lies to advance their Jew hatred.
How do you wrap up a post that starts with a horrific cartoon, has an interview with a released hostage that documents how he was terrorized, beaten, and abused, has a small bit of humor, and thencalls out the lies of an Oscar winning movie? What can possibly sum it all up? I wasn’t sure as I wrote or as I thought how this post would end. And then I saw and listened to Gal Gadot at the ADL conference today. I am not going to comment on it, break it down, or analyze it. I am going to let you listen and feel the impact of her words. We can stand up and speak out. We must stand up and speak out.
My name is Keith. I’m a father, a husband, a brother, a son, a professional, American, a Zionist, and I’m Jewish. I’m going to say it again. My name is Keith and I am Jewish.
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